MACVPR Bylaws

Under revision – Summer/Fall 2016

MONTANA ASSOCIATION OF CARDIOVASCULAR & PULMONARY REHABILITATION BYLAWS

April 11, 2013

Article I – Name

1. The name of the organization shall be the Montana Association of Cardiovascular & Pulmonary Rehabilitation. (MACVPR)

2. The Montana Association for Cardiovascular & Pulmonary Rehabilitation shall be formed as a non-profit organization.

Article II – Purpose and Goals

MACVPR Mission Statement:

1. Purpose:
MACVPR is the leader for cardiovascular and pulmonary rehabilitation in Montana.
MACVPR is dedicated to responding to, and carrying statewide opportunities for cardiovascular and pulmonary rehabilitation in Montana.
MACVPR will empower (Pass – It – On) its members to meet the challenges of tomorrow and sustain excellence of cardiovascular and pulmonary rehabilitation services by sharing resources to ensure quality outcomes.

MACVPR is accountable to our members, our programs, and our national leadership and expect accountability among our members.

2. Goals:

To promote the implementation of nationally developed Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Guidelines.

To promote an increased quality of patient care.

To provide and promote educational opportunities to increase professional and staff development.

To promote awareness of cardiac & pulmonary health issues among community, physicians, and third party payers.

To increasingly align ourselves with our national organization – American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR); to improve collaboration within our state organization (MACVPR); and, in addition, promote networking with all identified state programs.

To maximize reimbursement for cardiopulmonary rehabilitation.

Article III – Membership

1. Membership in the Association shall be of the following classes.
a. Individual Professional Member
b. Individual Student Member

2. Qualifications of each membership class are listed below:
a. Professional Member: Shall be any interested Health Care Professional working in the realm of or demonstrating an interest in cardiovascular and/or pulmonary medicine/rehab.
b. Student Member: Shall be an interested college student currently carrying the equivalent of at least one half of an academic load for one year, as defined by the college or university attended, and one who is studying in a medical or allied health curriculum.

3. Members are required to submit annual individual membership dues by January 31. Late payment is subject to penalty.

4. Privileges and Benefits: Members shall be entitled to all privileges of the Association. Members shall also be entitled to all Association services, communication, publications and other such member benefits as the Executive Board may specify.

5. A membership directory for all members shall be kept by the secretary.

6. Bylaws are available to all members on our web page. (https://macvprmontana.com)

7. Memberships are not limited to programs or individuals working within Montana.

8. Discipline: Any member of the Association may be disciplined or expelled for conduct, which in the opinion of the Executive Board is derogatory to the dignity of, or inconsistent with, the purposes of the Association. The expulsion of a member may be ordered only upon the affirmative vote of two-thirds of Executive Board present at a regular or special meeting, provided a quorum takes action, and only after such member has been informed of the charges preferred against him/her and has been given an opportunity to refute such charges before the Executive Board.

Article IV – Elections and Terms of Office

1. The President Elect position will be elected annually.

2. The secretary and treasurer position will be elected for a two year term. These positions will be elected on alternating years.

3. Officers will be elected by the general membership every year at the Annual Meeting.

4. Unexpired terms of office or vacancies therein, with the exception of the President, may be filled for the remainder of the terms by appointment of the President with the recommendation of the Executive Board.

5. No officer may be elected to more than two terms consecutively in the same office.

6. Resignation: Any officer may resign by submitting a written resignation with a thirty day notice to the Executive Board.

Article V – Officers

1. The officers of the Association must have Professional Member status and shall consist of the President, President Elect, Immediate Past President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Committee Chairs.

A. President. The President shall be the chief executive officer of the Association. The President shall serve as chairperson of the Executive Board, fill vacancies on committees, appoint chairpersons and members of special committees and be an ex-officio member of all committees. The president shall have general authority to supervise, direct and control the business and affairs of the Association. The President shall preside at all meetings of the members and have such powers and duties as may be prescribed from time to time by the Executive Board. The president will be the committee chair for the Program Planning Committee. He/She shall serve a one year term. The President, if so desires and voted in, may be re-elected to serve a second term.

B. President Elect. In the absence or disability of the President, the President-Elect shall perform all the duties of the President and in so acting shall have all powers of the President. The President-Elect will be responsible for overseeing annual membership renewals. The President-Elect shall have other such powers and perform such other duties as may be prescribed from time to time by the Executive Board. The President Elect will also sit on the Program Planning Committee. He/She shall serve a one-year term as President Elect and a one-year term as President. The President Elect will be presented an option to serve another term if the current President is re-elected for another term.

C. Immediate Past President. The Immediate Past President shall assist the President in formulating goals for the Association and shall perform other duties as may be assigned by the President or the Executive Committee, such as serving as liaison with one or more Committees. This individual will also sit on the Program Planning Committee. He/She shall serve a one year term, with an option to serve another one year term should the President be re-elected. The immediate past president will also provide oversight over the association’s finances.

D. Secretary. The Secretary shall record the minutes of all meetings; arrange correspondence with members, preside as editor of the quarterly newsletter, will maintain the accuracy of the web page, and will be the sole provider of all information sent to the webmaster. The secretary will maintain a current directory of all programs and members. He/She shall serve a two year term.

E. Treasurer. The Treasurer shall monitor all deposits and disbursements of funds relative to all accounts of the Association and verify the accuracy and currency of said accounts. He/She shall assist in the coordinating the activities of the Association’s budget and finances in order to maintain fiscal responsibility. The treasurer will provide an end-of-year report to the board and quarterly report to the Immediate Past President. He/She shall serve a two-year term.

F. Committee Chairs. The committee chairs shall be appointed by the President to perform duties designated for standing committees and shall function as representatives of the general membership.

G. In the event that an officer is unable to fulfill their responsibilities, the executive board will appoint the appropriate replacement to complete the term.

Article VI – Meetings

1. Regular meetings of the Association will be held at least one time per year. An annual business meeting of the Association shall be held to conduct corporate business and to elect officers as indicated for an election year. Date and site of the annual meeting will be approved by the Executive Board.

2. The Executive Board, consisting of all of the officers and committee chairs, shall meet a minimum of once per year or more as needed.

Article VII – Standing Committees and Duties

1. There shall be appointed committees as required to carry on the work of the Association. Each chair person of the committee will sit on the Executive Board, and will be a current paid member of MACVPR. Each chair will decide how many committee members are needed to complete the tasks of the committee.

2. Executive Board: The Executive Board shall oversee the operations of the Association and coordinate activities of the other committees. The Executive Board is empowered to create, combine or dissolve committees or to change their composition or responsibilities as the need may arise. The composition of the committees shall be determined by the Executive Board. Except as otherwise provided, chairpersons of the committees shall be appointed by the President with approval of the Executive Board.

3. Program Planning Committee: Shall be responsible for organizing and implementing an annual conference and workshops dealing with membership education. The chair of this committee will be held by the President. The President Elect and the Immediate Past President will sit on this committee along with other appointed members. The committee will be required to have Nurse Planner (BSN prepared) and a Respiratory Therapist with an active membership to AARC; and one or more of the following certifications: RRT, CRT, CPFT, RPSGT, RPFT, AE-C.

4. Reimbursement and Legislative Committee: Shall be responsible for attending to issues of reimbursement and legislation that might affect the MACVPR members and programs.

5. Outcomes committee: This committee shall be responsible for collaborating with the Montana Cardiovascular Health Program to coordinate the regional cardiac rehab outcomes project. Duties include: program recruitment and retention, developing program specific qualities improvement projects, and modifying existing outcome indicators as needed.

6. Opportunity Committee: This committee will promote communication and networking with cardiopulmonary programs in our region. The committee will notify programs of grass roots legislation issues (letter writing campaigns), personally invite programs to the annual MACVPR conference, and encourage membership in MACVPR.
7. Vacancies: Appointments to fill vacancies occurring in committees shall be by the same procedure as the original appointment.

8. Reports: The chairperson of committees shall report to the President in person, or in writing, within the time frame established by the President. The work of the committees shall be summarized by the President to the Executive Board.

Article VIII – Quorums

1. The voting body at membership meetings shall consist of members in good standing. A quorum shall consist of 25% of the membership in good standing.

2. The quorum of the Executive Board shall consist of a half of its members.

Article IX – Fiscal Year

1. The fiscal year shall begin on January 1 of each calendar year.

Article X – Funds

1. The funds of the Association shall be provided by the membership dues as well as from endowments, gifts, grants, requests and other such sources as the Executive Board sanctions.

Article XI – Amendments

1. The bylaws may be amended by two-thirds vote of the active members who are present in person, or represented by proxy, at any regular business meeting.

Article XIII – Dissolution

1. The affiliate shall not be dissolved as long as eight members in good standing dissent. No proposal for dissolution shall be considered unless four weeks notice in writing is provided to each member in good standing.

Signatures of the Executive Board:

President: ______________________________ Reimbursement: ____________________
Susi Mathis Christine Standish

President-Elect:_________________________ Opportunity: _______________________
Ashley Wishman Debby Lee

Secretary: _____________________________ Outcomes: _________________________
Joani Hope Mike McNamara

Treasurer: _____________________________
Shannon Isakson

Immediate Past President: _____________________
Debby Lee

Ratified the 11th day of April, 2013, by ___ % of members.