College appoints three Board members under new rules

College appoints three Board members under new rules

The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners has appointed three members to its Executive Board under its new rules, says Acting President Dr Tim Malloy.

The College initially received four nominations for Board membership which would have meant an election for the three places available. However, one nominee withdrew their application before the due date for announcing the election. With only three candidates, an election was not necessary and the three nominees were deemed elected to the Board.

“I’m very pleased to announce that Drs John Wellingham and Mark Peterson are joining the Board in September. They’re both excellent candidates and will represent the membership very well. I’m also pleased to be staying on the Board for another term as the third elected member.

“John has extensive experience in general practice, primary care teams and working with our funders. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the College, chaired our Quality Advisory Committee for three years and was a key player in developing Aiming for Excellence and CORNERSTONE,” says Dr Malloy.

Dr Wellingham says of his appointment to the Board, “I welcome the opportunity to use my experience to contribute to further unlocking and delivering the untapped capability and capacity of general practitioners to contribute to improved health care service delivery for all New Zealanders.”

“Mark Peterson also has a long association with the College,” says Dr Malloy. “He was chairman of the Hawkes Bay Sub-faculty and spent six years attending the old College Council meetings as an observer from the New Zealand Medical Association. We’re looking forward to having him more closely involved in governing the College.”

“I was a member of the constitutional review committee that recommended the changes to the structure of the College and am now keen to see this through as a member of the incoming Board,” says Dr Peterson.

“Most of us in general practice feel that we are sometimes seen as a ‘lesser’ speciality than some of our sister colleges. If general practice is to be recognised as an equal medical specialty then our college needs to reflect this in its standards and policies.”

The new Board members will take up their positions at the College’s AGM on 22 September.

For more information, visit the College website at www.rnzcgp.org.nz

Questions and answers about Board elections
What is the make-up of the College Board?

The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners is governed by a National Advisory Council that represents GPs from throughout New Zealand.

In addition, it currently has an Executive Board consisting of an elected President and Deputy President, a representative from Te Akoranga a Maui (the Māori Faculty), three other members appointed by the President and Deputy President, and the Chief Executive Officer. They make many of the day-to-day decisions required between formal meetings of the Council.

The College published its new rules in April which specify that the College will be governed by an Executive Board containing a President and three members elected from the College’s membership, two additional members appointed by the Board, who can come from outside general practice, and a representative from Te Akoranga a Maui.

The rules were changed to increase the membership’s say in who governs the College.

How long will the three new Board members serve for?

Board members hold office for an initial term of three years. However, as this is the first election under these rules, the new Board members will agree among themselves an order of retirement after serving one, two and three years. This means one third of the seats become vacant each year to be filled by election.

How will they decide who stays on the Board for one, two and three years?

The College rules state that the new Board members should agree among themselves the order of retirement. If they cannot reach a decision, they must decide the order by drawing lots.

What happens to transition from the old to the new Board arrangements?

The current President remains until the end of his elected term in September 2013. Two members of the former Board and the Te Akoranga a Maui representative have been appointed to a transitional Board until the College AGM on 22 September when the new Board members will take up their positions.

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