COMMITTEE CHAIRS

Committee Chairs and Co-Chairs are appointed by the Presidents Committee and approved by the Executive Committee.  Unless otherwise stated, all Committee Chairs are appointed to a three-year term, may be reappointed, and perform the following functions:

Chairman Functions:

• Preside as chair for all committee meetings and conference calls.
• Provides leadership for achieving committee’s goals by directing, monitoring and evaluating committee activities.
• Participates as a non-voting, advisory capacity during the Executive Committee Annual Congress.
• Reports committee progress and issues to the Executive Committee during the Annual Congress.
• Reports committee progress and issues to the membership during the General Assembly during the Annual Congress.

In the absence of the Committee Chair, Co-chairs shall perform all duties of the Chair and preside at all meetings.

COMMITTEE SELECTION PROCESS

NOMINATION PROCESS:

• IPEG member present at the annual meeting will have the opportunity to self nominate by placing their names for consideration of committee selection.
• Members may self nominate to serve on multiple committees, but they must number their order of preference.
• Members will serve on 1 committee at a time with the exception of the program committee, publication committee, executive committee, past-presidents committee and CME committee.
• Members may also become committee members by nomination of the committee chair or any member of the executive committee.

SELECTION PROCESS

• The secretary will select the new members using the suggested maximum numbers listed below for each committee.
• The secretary will submit the preliminary committee rosters to the executive committee for approval by vote. Any suggested new committee members receiving 2 no votes will not be selected.
• Prior to voting to approve the new rosters, the executive committee has the option to remove committee members or suggests alternative names prior to the final vote.

TERMS OF COMMITTEE SERVICE:

• New members will serve a 3-year term and then become eligible for 2-year extension by the executive committee.
• Only committee members who attending the committee meeting in person at the annual meeting 2 of the 3 years will be considered for extension or rotation into the chair role.

TERMS OF CHAIRPERSON SERVICE

• The chairperson will be selected by the executive committee from the eligible committee members
• Committee members who move into the chair role will serve a 3 year term and become eligible for a 2-year extension decided by the executive committee.
• This extension will only be considered for those chairpersons who presided over the annual committee meeting in person at least 2 of the 3 years.
• A committee chairperson may be removed and replaced during the 3 year term at the discretion of the executive committee.

PUBLICATION, PROGRAM AND EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

• Only after serving a 3-year term will members become eligible for the program committee or publication committee.
• Only members of the program committee or publication committee will be considered for a leadership position within the executive committee.

MEMBERSHIP STATUS

Members who fail to pay their dues and lose IPEG membership status according to the previously defined membership rules will be removed their committee positions. These members will reminded of this implication with a final written warning after their dues notifications prior to dropping their membership status.

STANDING COMMITTEES

DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE:

It shall be the duty of this standing committee to pursue fundraising in support of the activities and programs of the Society, through both outside funding sources and member gifts in conjunction with the administrative office.

The committee should consist of 10-15 members (no more than 15) and include a Chair and Co-chair, President, Program Chair, President-Elect and the Treasurer.

Committee Charges:

1. Assist staff with the solicitation of grants and funding from our corporate partners towards the society’s annual meeting and educational goals;
2. Adhere to the policies and procedures of the American Academy of Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) in regards to fundraising initiatives;
3. Establish short and long term goals for the Long Term Research Fund (LTRF) and serve as the champions for this fund.

EDUCATION COMMITTEE:

It shall be the duty of this standing committee to assess member’s educational needs and to develop appropriate educational activities and opportunities for the Society.

The committee should consist of 15-20 members and include a Chair and Co-chair.

Committee Charges:

1. Identify news and educational opportunities related to pediatric MIS for practicing surgeons, surgeons-in-training, and allied health professionals in all regions of the world;
2. Address professional practice gaps and provide recommendations to society members to overcome these gaps, and manage any conflicts of interest/bias from the annual congress;
3. Develop continuing education tools and resources helpful for performance improvement;
4. Reviews and approves proposals on behalf of the society to endorse related courses.

CLINICAL & PRACTICE GUIDELINES (EDUCATION SUB COMMITTEE):

Committee Charges:

1. Update current guidelines for technique and levels of references every 2-3 years;
2. Prepare new guidelines for approval by the Executive Committee and publication on the website and journal;
3. Review current international guidelines through literature and other resources and implement any new policies and procedures to current and future guidelines.

VIDEO LIBRARY (EDUCATION SUB COMMITTEE):

Committee Charges:

1. 3-4 standardized videos uploaded and available
2. Incorporate educational video products into IPEG meeting and website
3. Videos incorporate standard approaches and alternatives providing a best practice product

INNOVATIONS COMMITTEE:

It shall be the duty of this standing committee to identify, review and present new and novel technologies and techniques that relates to or affects pediatric minimally invasive surgery.

The committee should consist of 15-20 members and include a Chair and Co-chair.

Committee Charges:

1. Review and grade video submissions for the annual congress and late-breaking submissions on novel technologies;
2. Draft statements on behalf of the society related to novel technologies and techniques, and issue them upon approval from the Executive Committee.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE

It shall be the duty of this standing committee to design, maintenance, timely updating, and security of the IPEG website, a primary means of communication with the IPEG membership and interested individuals.

The committee should consist of 15-20 members and include a Chair and Co-chair.

Committee Charges:

1. Review and evaluate the society website for currency, comprehensiveness and accuracy on an ongoing basis;
2. Evaluate and recommend new website features and technologies that would enhance the society’s mission and goals and/or improve collaboration between members;
3. Oversee the implementation and participate in the testing of additional features on the society website.

MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE:

It shall be the duty of this standing committee to set and maintain the principles and rules for application to the Society, determines the needs of members and potential members, and continually evaluates and works to improve the value of Society membership.

The committee should consist of 20-25 members and include a Chair and Co-chair, Secretary, Regional Representatives and 3 members to from each region.

Committee Charges:

1. Analyzes the composition of members and make recommendations based on current trends in society membership;
2. Develops and oversees implementation of short and long term strategy to recruit new members and retain current ones;
3. Constructs surveys to evaluate membership satisfaction and future needs.…

PAST PRESIDENTS COMMITTEE:

It shall be the duty of this standing committee to serve as the financial and political advisers to the Society, and will bring proposals to the Executive Committee, where all proposals will be subject to a vote by the Executive Committee.  Committee Members serve life appointments.

The committee should consist of the Immediate Past President as the Chair of the committee, the current President, and all Past Presidents so long as they are able to participate in the Society.

Committee Charges:

1. Nomination of IPEG Officers and Committee Chairs and Co-Chairs;
2. Work with the IPEG management company to find appropriate meeting venues and facilities for the annual congress – i.e., city selection;
3. Work with other societies to represent pediatric endoscopic surgery;
4. Negotiate contracts on behalf of the society such as the journal and the management company.

PROGRAM COMMITTEE:

It shall be the duty of this standing committee to be responsible for developing the program schedule, courses and special events that will be held in conjunction with the Annual Congress.  The Program Chairs are appointed for only a one-year term.

The committee should consist of 25-30 members and include the current Chair, 2 Co-Chairs (one of which being the previous Annual Congress chair), previous year’s President, President-Elect and incoming Program Chairs.

Committee Charges:

1. Develop overall goals, objectives and educational criteria in conjunction with the Program Chair for the annual congress;
2. Review and grade abstract submissions for the annual congress;
3. Adhere to the policies and procedures of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).

RESEARCH COMMITTEE:

It shall be the duty of this standing committee to facilitate quality research among the IPEG membership aimed Pediatric Minimal Access Surgery and endoscopy.

The committee should consist of 15-20 members and include a Chair and Co-chair.

Committee Charges:

1. Reviews eligible candidates for the Basic Science Award at the annual congress and selects a winner;
2. Reviews applications for the Research Grant Award and selects a winner;
3. Serves as a clearinghouse for surveys to be sent to the membership;
4. Identifies research studies for the membership to participate in and collects data on these studies to publish in journals.