We are looking forward to welcoming HealthWatch members, interested media, and any member of the public with an interest in integrity in healthcare, to HealthWatch’s Annual General Meeting 2019 in London.
As usual, attendance at the HealthWatch AGM and presentations is free and open to all. If you would like to stay for the dinner, however, this must be pre-booked and paid for in advance, see the agenda below. While all are welcome to attend the AGM, only members may vote.
Date: Tuesday 29 October 2019
Time: 19:00 (drinks reception from 18.30 — see below for full agenda)
Location: The Medical Society of London, Lettsom House, 11 Chandos Street, Cavendish Square, LONDON W1G 9EB (see map)
The 2019 HealthWatch Award will be presented to Dr Faye Kirkland
In four years, the GP and investigative journalist Faye Kirkland progressed from graduating with a diploma in journalism to being awarded best newcomer from the Association of British Science Writers (2016) to Freelance of the Year from the Medical Journalists’ Association (2018), while still working as a GP.
Her journalism is widely recognised to combine a respect for scientific evidence and statistics with the interviewing skills of a GP.
She has done exclusive investigations for Panorama, BBC News, BBC Breakfast, Victoria Derbyshire programme, BBC Radio 4, BBC 5 Live, and for the Guardian. Her reporting has led to changes in clinical practice, sparked national and local inquiries and prompted parliamentary questions in The House.
Her peers in the media praise her for 'her dedicated attention to detail; her ability to put interviewees from all walks of life at their ease, and her boundless energy in the pursuit of important medical stories in the public interest.'
Agenda
18:30 Reception for the AGM and Award ceremony.
19:00 Annual General meeting of HealthWatch (only members of HealthWatch may vote, but non-members are welcome to attend).
19:30 Presentation of awards to the winners of the 2019 Student Prize competition for critical analysis of clinical research protocols.
19:40 Presentation of the 2019 HealthWatch Award to Dr Faye Kirkland (see above).
20:30 Buffet dinner (£45.00 per person). To order your buffet dinner, please click here:
Nominations for Committee
Our constitution requires that nominations for officers and members of the committee should be submitted not less than 28 days before the AGM.
Any member of HealthWatch can nominate an officer or ordinary member for the committee. Nominations should be seconded by another member, accompanied by a letter from the person nominated to state s/he accepts, and sent to the Secretary, Prof David Bender or by post to 8 Eagle Close, AMERSHAM HP6 6TD before 30 September.
Motions for discussion
Changes to the Constitution of HealthWatch
The committee is proposing two changes to the constitution, as follows:
1) Paragraph 3d reads as follows: “Corporate Membership: Corporate membership shall be open to companies and professional bodies, provided that they satisfy the Committee of HealthWatch and that they are interested in promoting the aims and interests of HealthWatch. Subscription fees paid by Corporate members will be subject to negotiation with the Executive Committee of HealthWatch.”
It is proposed to delete this paragraph. HealthWatch has never had any corporate members, and we prize our independence, so would not wish to attract corporate members.
2) Paragraph 6b reads as follows: “The Committee shall consist of the officers of HealthWatch and eight other members elected from the ordinary membership.”
It is proposed to change this to read “between eight and twelve other members”, so as to permit us to recruit committee members (Trustees of the Charity) who have expertise lacking among other committee members (eg, we currently have no Trustee with medico-legal expertise).
Motions to be proposed for discussion
Motions for discussion at the AGM should be sent to the Secretary, Prof David Bender or by post to 8 Eagle Close, AMERSHAM HP6 6TD before 30 September.