ASCIA Committees and Working Parties: Terms of Reference

The following ASCIA committees are standing committees of the ASCIA Council, continuing indefinitely, with representation on Council:

Membership of the committees mentioned above is open to ASCIA members who interests and qualifications that are relevant to the committee.

In addition to the above mentioned committees there are ASCIA working parties, which are not standing committees of the ASCIA Council. These are usually limited in membership (due to funding of face to face meetings) and include the:

• ASCIA AIT/VIT/SPT working party
• ASCIA CSU working party
• ASCIA EOE working party
• ASCIA HAE working party

Chairs of ASCIA working parties may be co-opted to the ASCIA Council as deemed necessary by the ASCIA Directors.

Purpose

The purpose of ASCIA committees and working parties is to advance the science and practice of immunology and allergy by:

• Developing, publishing and updating consensus guidelines and educational resources for health professionals, based on published literature and expert consensus.
• Developing and updating educational resources for patients, carers and consumers based on published literature and expert consensus.
• Advising ASCIA Council on relevant matters which are referred to the committee or working party.
• Promoting collaboration and sharing of information amongst ASCIA members.
• Fostering collaborative clinical research in relevant areas.
• Developing and maintaining disease registers (where applicable) and related research.
• Coordination of relevant educational activities for ASCIA members.

Membership

• Each ASCIA committee is populated by ASCIA members (Full and Associate) who can request to join at any time throughout the year.
• ASCIA members can serve on committees for an unlimited number of terms.
• There should be a minimum of 5 members on each committee. In the absence of a sufficient number of suitable appointees, existing members may recommend potential appointees (with their consent) for consideration by Council. Attendance at a meeting in order for the committee to make a decision should be no less than 3 members.
• Each member (including the Chair and Deputy Chair) will be requested to complete an ASCIA Declaration of Potential Conflicts of Interest form, to ensure transparency and consistency with ASCIA policies.

Chair

• ASCIA committee Chairs are eligible for reappointment and may serve for a maximum of 3 consecutive 2 year terms.
• Every 2 years (after the Annual General Meeting) a request will be sent to ASCIA members for nominations of Chairs from the existing committee membership, for appointment by Council. The Chair will be appointed for a term of 2 years.
• Where there is more than one nomination for either position, the committee's recommendation to Council will be decided by secret ballot (conducted by the ASCIA CEO) and a deputy Chair position can be appointed.

Meetings

• ASCIA Committees and working parties usually meet by teleconference and documents are reviewed by email, organised by ASCIA staff.
• Teleconferences are arranged and funded by ASCIA.
• The Chair may also convene a face to face meeting during the ASCIA Annual Conference.
• In the absence of the Chair, the deputy Chair will be the acting Chair.
• The Chair should provide a concise written or verbal report to Council for each face to face meeting of ASCIA Council.  Any requests for funding that are in addition to reasonable operating expenses need to be approved by the ASCIA Directors, via the ASCIA CEO. 

Content Updated October 2019