I have been asked by the members of the committee organizing the British Columbia Travel Medicine Society to assist with the incorporation of the society. I am a retired solicitor, and Darin’s wife, and therefore have agreed to help out.
I am in the process of finalizing the charter documents, which are made up of the name of the society, the constitution or purpose of the society and the bylaws of the society. Once these documents are completed, they are forwarded to Victoria along with the list of first directors and the address of the society.
I have reserved the name of the society with the Registrar of Companies and we have received conditional approval of the name. In order to receive final approval, we need to obtain the consent of the provincial government and the college of physicians to the use of the words “British Columbia” and “medicine” respectively. I am in the process of taking care of this.
The constitution or purpose of the society has been completed and reads as follows:
The purposes of the society are:
1. to promote healthy and safe travel by:
a. providing travelers with quality pre-travel counseling and vaccination services to prevent travel-related illness;
b. increasing public awareness of the need for professional advice to ensure individual and global health; and
c. fostering cooperation among all persons, whether individual, corporate or governmental, who have a direct or indirect impact on travelers’ health including, without limitation, pre and post travel health care providers, members of the travel industry, governmental agencies, national and international travel medicine associations, pharmacists and vaccine and pharmaceutical manufacturers;
2. to facilitate quality pre-travel counseling and vaccination services and the proper and effective treatment of post travel illness by providing continuing education, support and guidelines to health care providers to ensure that travelers receive consistent advice across British Columbia; and
3. to facilitate and promote research respecting travel health related issues.
The Bylaws set out the guts of the society and govern issues such as membership, voting, directors, meetings etc. The key bylaws are those governing membership and voting.
1. The membership shall be divided into voting and non-voting members. The following persons are eligible for voting membership:
a. British Columbia travel medicine providers whether in the public or private health care systems (“Class A voting members”); and
b. senior administrative officers of travel clinics located in British Columbia (“Class B voting members”).
All other persons are eligible for non-voting membership provided that the number of non-voting members does not exceed the number of voting members.
2. Membership will not be granted to corporations, associations, partnerships or other such legal entities.
1. All voting members are entitled to one vote provided that Class B Voting members are not entitled to vote on decisions respecting the setting of health care standards or the provision of health care.
Once the society has been officially incorporated, you will be notified by email so that you may view the final and complete charter documents.