NLM Invites Nominations for IHTSDO Standing Committees Due August 5, 2009; New Procedures for Nomination, Selection of U.S. Nominees

Call for Nominations: As the U.S. Member of the International Health Terminology Standards Development Organisation (IHTSDO), the National Library of Medicine (NLM) is soliciting nominations of potential candidates for the four IHTSDO Standing Committees – Content, Quality Assurance, Implementation & Innovation (formerly Research & Innovation), and Technical. These Committees have important roles in the ongoing development of the SNOMED CT clinical terminology and in the IHTSDO. Nominations are due to NLM by August 5, 2009 (see details below).

The current roster, terms of reference, and recent reports of each Committee are available on the IHTSDO website (http://www.ihtsdo.org/about-ihtsdo/governance-and-advisory/standing-committees/). The Committees are described in Sections 9.4-9.9 of the Articles of the IHTSDO.

Half of each Standing Committee’s 12 members are serving terms that expire in December 2009. People elected to these slots will serve for 2 years (Jan. 2010-Dec. 2011). There may be additional Committee vacancies caused by resignations. People elected to fill these mid-term slots will serve for 1 year (Jan-Dec. 2010). Committee members whose terms are expiring are eligible for re-nomination, but must submit a nomination package. (see details below). As a result of changes to the IHTSDO Articles approved in April 2009, the majority of the positions on each Committee are at-large seats and may be filled by people nominated by IHTSDO Members from any geographic region. The Americas region includes the U.S. and Canada. The Candian call for nominations is being run on the same schedule as the U.S. process.

U.S. Nomination Process: Beginning this year, all U.S. SNOMED CT Affiliate Licensees (aka, all U.S. UMLS Licensees) may vote to select the U.S. candidates for IHTSDO Committees. The timeline for nominations and elections is:

• July 15, 2009 – August 5, 2009: NLM accepts nominations of potential candidates for the four IHTSDO Standing Committees. Only candidates with complete nomination packets will be accepted (see below for details, as the IHTSDO has instituted new nomination requirements and forms.)
  
  
• August 10, 2009 – August 26, 2009: U.S. SNOMED CT Affiliates cast votes for their top three candidates for each Standing Committee. Instructions for casting ballots will be sent to U.S. SNOMED CT Affiliates on August 10th. For each Committee, the three candidates receiving the highest number of votes will become the U.S. nominees for the Committee.
  
  
• September 1, 2009: NLM will submit the names of the three (3) candidates receiving the highest number of votes as nominees for each of the four Committees to the IHTSDO for consideration by the IHTSDO General Assembly.
  
  
• October 5, 2009: IHTSDO will announce the final results of the election process at the General Assembly Meeting.
  
  

Committee Obligations and Participation Logistics: English is the official language of the IHTSDO, but Committee Members must be willing to take extra steps to ensure understanding by those for whom English is a second language. Teleconference arrangements are available for all Committee meetings, but, given the geographic distribution of IHTSDO members (currently Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Lithuania, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States), meeting schedules cannot be convenient for all relevant time zones. The IHTSDO encourages Committee Members to attend at least one of the two major IHTSDO meetings each year in person. For U.S. Committee members who need assistance to attend face to face meetings, NLM supports travel to at least two IHTSDO meetings per year. Committee Members must participate in at least 50% of their Committee’s meetings to retain their seat on the Committee. U.S. Committee members may also be called upon to provide advice and input to NLM on matters related to the IHTSDO and SNOMED CT.

Submitting your nomination: Nominations are due to NLM by August 5, 2009. Please submit your nomination packets to NLM by e-mail (nichsr@nlm.nih.gov) or Fax (301-402-3193) with the subject line “US Nominations – IHTSDO Standing Committees”. Each nomination packet must include:

1. Completed Nomination Form (PDF, Word)
2. 1 page mini curriculum vitae highlighting the key areas of the applicant’s experience and expertise
3. 1 page statement of interest outlining why the nominee is suited for the particular Committee in question and why the nominee feels that the Committee’s work is important. NOTE: Nominations MUST be for a specific Committee.
4. Completed skills matrix for the relevant Committee summarizing key aspects of the nominee’s background
   
   1. Content (PDF, Word)
   2. Quality Assurance (PDF, Word)
   3. Implementation and Innovation (PDF, Word)
   4. Technical (PDF, Word)
5. Completed Declaration of Interests (PDF, Word)

Individuals may nominate themselves. Questions about the nomination process should be sent to nichsr@nlm.nih.gov, please include the subject line “US Nominations – IHTSDO Standing Committees”.

Last reviewed: 15 July 2009
Last updated: 03 August 2009
First published: 15 July 2009
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