1. Objectives
The Australasian TeleHealth Society (ATHS) is a "non-profit organisation ", as defined in section 2, comprising members as defined in section 7, and has the following objectives:
1.1 to further the intellectual and professional interests of telehealth researchers and practitioners within Australia and
New Zealand;
1.2 to promote relevant local, national and international telehealth activities generally within Australia and New Zealand;
1.3 to encourage ATHS membership and to organise appropriate local, national and international activities for ATHS members;
1.4 to provide a channel for liaison between ATHS members and other relevant local, national and international entities, including ISfTeH.
2. Non-Profit
The assets and income of the ATHS shall be applied solely in furtherance of its above mentioned objectives, and no portion shall be distributed directly or indirectly to the members of the ATHS except as bona fide compensation for services rendered or expenses incurred on behalf of the organisation.
3. Committee
The ATHS committee shall be responsible for the operations of the ATHS and shall meet at least annually to do so, with a quorum of 3 of which at least 2 shall be officers as defined in sections 3.1 to 3.4. There shall be 4 officers of the committee at all times. All officers must be current members of the ATHS. The committee will consist of the following officers:
3.1 President
3.2 Vice-President
3.3 Treasurer
3.4 Secretary
3.5 Members at large appointed by the committee.
At least one of the members of the committee shall be a resident of Australia and at least one member of the committee shall be a resident of New Zealand. The responsibilities of the above officers will be determined by the ATHS committee. The committee may make any decisions related to the operations and objectives of ATHS except in contradiction of this constitution, by a simple majority vote of committee members present in person.
The committee may set up subcommittees of ATHS to undertake specific tasks. At least one committee member must be a member of any such subcommittee. The committee may appoint ATHS members to fill any vacant offices or to serve as members at large on the committee or to serve on subcommittees of ATHS. Except for the foundation committee, all officers of the committee will be elected every year as described in section 5 of this constitution.
4. Activities
The ATHS shall organise the following activities, amongst others:
4.1 Seminar or lecture meetings on a local or national or international scale, intended for all or some section of ATHS members and open to all ATHS members (and if appropriate to the public);
4.2 Local or national or international conference or workshop meetings, open to all ATHS members and to the public;
4.3 General meetings as described in section 5 of this constitution;
4.4 Regular contributions to appropriate newsletters and other publications, including details of intended meetings.
5. General Meetings
The ATHS committee must call a general meeting of the ATHS, of which all ATHS members are notified at least one month prior to the meeting date, under the following circumstances:
5.1 In the second half of each calendar year an Annual General Meeting (AGM) must be held;
5.2 At the request of the committee or at the written request of 10 members or 10% of ATHS members (whichever is greater), a Special General Meeting (SGM) must be held.
A Quorum for a General Meeting will be 10 members or 10% of ATHS members (whichever is greater).
The purposes of the AGM will be to report on and discuss the activities of the ATHS, work undertaken by the ATHS committee for the running of the society, membership and financial status of the society. At each AGM the officers for the period until the next AGM will be elected.
The minutes for the previous ATHS AGM and any SGMs since then, and the agenda for the coming AGM, must be circulated to ATHS members at least one month prior to the AGM meeting date.
Election of committee members for each office will be by simple majority vote of those members present at the AGM. ATHS members nominating for committee positions must have a proposer and a seconder who are both current ATHS members.
The purpose of an SGM is to discuss only those matters pertinent to the calling of the SGM. Any motion to be considered at the SGM must be circulated with the notice of meeting, stating the names of the proposer and seconder, who must be current ATHS members.
6. Dissolution
The ATHS can be dissolved at a SGM or an AGM. In the event of the ATHS being dissolved, the amount which remains after such dissolution and the satisfaction of all debts and liabilities, shall be paid and applied by the Committee in accordance with their powers to the national body if this body is a "non-profit organisation" under Australian Tax Office classification. In the event of the national body not being such a "non-profit organisation" the amount which remains after such dissolution and the satisfaction of all debts and liabilities, shall be paid and applied by the Committee in accordance with their powers to any fund, institution or authority which is a non-profit organisation.
7. Membership
The categories of ATHS membership shall be as follows:
7.1 individual: persons who have an interest in telehealth matters;
7.2 student: persons enrolled fulltime at an educational institution located in Australia or New Zealand, who would otherwise qualify as individual members but are permitted to join at a discounted rate;
7.3 corporate: commercial entities offering (or intending to offer) telehealth products or services.
The benefits of membership and the schedule of fees for the different categories of membership shall be determined from time to time by the ATHS committee.
Membership will be conferred by the ATHS committee after due consideration of an application for membership in a prescribed format and accompanied by payment of the associated fee. Membership will be for the current calendar year (January to December); irrespective of when during the year the membership application is accepted.
Membership may be renewed by the ATHS Secretary on receipt of a renewal of membership in a prescribed format and accompanied by payment of the associated fee.
Membership may be revoked at any time by the ATHS committee if deemed in the interests of ATHS, without refund of any residual dues.
