The newly updated North Carolina Medical Society (NCMS) constitution and bylaws, reflecting the House of Delegates recent decisions to make the NCMS Board of Directors directly accountable to the Society’s membership, has been posted on our website for easy reference. Access the updated Constitution and Bylaws.
Implementation of the new structure is underway. Stay informed of the progress through the Bulletin and on the NCMS website.  As NCMS Board Member and Chair of the Bylaws Modernization Task Force Jeff Runge, MD, stated at the House of Delegates: “The Bylaws changes allow us to begin fine-tuning our processes.”
Some of the steps to achieve the standards in the new bylaws include:
Rotating Board of Directors meetings
The NCMS Board of Directors’ meetings will be held on the dates and in the locations listed below:

  • Jan. 8-9, 2016 in Raleigh                             
  • March 18-19, 2016 in Wilmington
  • May 13-14, 2016 in Cary                             
  • July 15-16, 2016 in Charlotte
  • Sept. 15-18, 2016, NCMS Annual Meeting/M3 Conference in Greensboro
  • Dec. 3, 2016 in Raleigh

The on-site schedule for the meetings will be available in the Bulletin as details are finalized. Meetings will include both business sessions and membership events. NCMS President Docia Hickey, MD, will preside over the meetings and invites members to submit items for discussion.
“I look forward to hearing from our members about the issues on their minds while caring for patients in their communities,” she said. “We already have feedback from some large county medical societies, which is a great start to our new workflow.”
To submit an issue for consideration on the Board’s meeting agenda, complete our secure, online form.
NCMS Annual Meeting
The NCMS Annual Meeting will evolve substantially to meet members’ needs. Several ideas were discussed at the Open Forum held following the 2015 House of Delegates. In response to members’ needs, the meeting will be expanded to include educational sessions, CME offerings and discussion of timely issues affecting medical practice.  The “Annual Meeting” as described in the bylaws will take place to consider all business issues on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2016, as part of the “M3 Conference: Merging Medicine and Management.” The new “M3 Conference” is an educational collaboration between the NCMS and the NC Medical Group Managers Association (NCMGMA).  Watch upcoming issues of the Bulletin for news about the conference and how to register.
Elections
In Spring 2016, the Nominating & Leadership Development Committee will publish its work schedule to allow ample time to receive and consider nominations for officer elections. The work schedule will include 2017 vacancies and requirements. The actual elections will take place electronically, using a third-party vendor to manage the process fairly and accurately.
House of Delegates Status Report
The actions of the 2015 House of Delegates will be documented and reported to members as in previous years through the House of Delegates Status Report. Moving forward, Board actions will be recorded and reported in a similar format, to ensure business items, including NCMS policy review, stay on track.
“The action taken by the House of Delegates last month empowers the NCMS to meet the needs of a much larger universe of members,” Dr. Hickey said. “The immediate nature of electronic communication and the critical issues before the NC General Assembly and regulatory agencies changes the way we do business and has created an urgent need for the Society to move more quickly than ever before. Open channels of communication and dialogue, along with a renewed focus on education,  will only serve to meet our members’ current needs and make the Society a more valuable and effective resource.”