Committee Procedures
Meeting Procedures
The goal is group consensus and the input and endorsement of imaging community stakeholders on major decisions.
A record of committee decisions and rationale is necessary to be effective and learn.
- Secretariat (RSNA) records minutes (call summaries) for committee meetings
- Secretariat maintains rosters for each committee indicating which members currently have Voting Privileges
- Members who believe their attendance record is in error should contact the secretariat, preferably before the meeting
Voting
Procedural decisions (such as whether to send a document to ballot) are voted on during meetings
- Chairs accept motions, seconds, discussion, and then call for a vote (see Roberts Rules if you need to get more elaborate)
- Members who have Voting Privileges count towards quorum and may vote
- Chairs resolve negative votes and large numbers of abstentions per the consensus process
- details of the resolution discussion in the minutes is desirable
- Secretariat records the motion, tally of those against/abstaining/in-favor, and the details of negative votes in the minutes
Email Ballot
Some decisions are put to ballot. This allows more deliberation on the subject material than a vote in committee.
- Chairs submit the ballot question and length of the ballot period to the Secretariat
- The ballot period may be specified by the particular procedure that calls for a ballot
- It is generally not less than 14 days to allow for members away on vacation
- If reviewing lengthy documents or collecting feedback within member organizations is involved 30 days or more is better
- Secretariat emails the ballot to all members with Voting Privileges on the committee making the decision
- Secretariat emails a notification of ineligibility to the rest of the members of the committee making the decision
- Members who do not have Voting Privileges will thus be aware of the ballot and are still permitted to submit comments
- Members who believe their attendance record is in error can review of their attendance with the secretariat and if they are found to be eligible will be sent a ballot
- Secretariat compiles the ballot responses and comments for the Chairs
- Chairs ratify the resulting tally in the next committee meeting
- this includes resolving negative votes and large numbers of abstentions per the consensus process
- Secretariat records resolution results/rationale in the minutes
Consensus Process
As a group setting standards on behalf of a community, QIBA Committees actively pursue Consensus.
- strictly speaking a vote/ballot can pass with a quorum of votes and a majority in favor, BUT
- a negative vote results in further discussion
- understand the reason for each negative vote and attempt to find a compromise or resolution that often allows everyone to vote in favor
- if after due diligence exploring compromises it is not possible, the chairs can accept the majority finding and the negative voters have had a chance to have their say and register their issues into the minutes
- a large number of abstentions also warrants discussion; it can indicate many people have:
- misgivings
- not been able to adequately evaluate the question
- a negative vote results in further discussion
Committee Leadership
- Coordinating Committees, Biomarker Committees and Task Forces are encouraged to have 2 or 3 leaders who are preferably drawn from diverse backgrounds (Researchers, Clinicians, Physicists, Vendors, Regulators, etc.)
- If not possible, committees are permitted to have some concentration but should discuss plans to expand stakeholder representation at least annually