NOVA SCOTIA COLLEGE OF PHARMACISTS

 

 

Bylaws

 

Passed by the Council of the College pursuant to the provisions of the Pharmacy Act

 

 

Definitions

1          In these bylaws, unless the context otherwise requires or a separate definition is provided, words and phrases defined in the Pharmacy Act or the regulations passed pursuant to the Pharmacy Act have the same meaning in these bylaws.

 

 

Fiscal Year

2          The fiscal year of the College begins on the first day of January in any year and ends on the thirty-first day of December of that year.

 

 

Seal

3          The seal of the College shall be kept by the Registrar, who shall affix it to all documents for which it is required.

 

 

Members

4          (1)            The membership of the College consists of all persons admitted as members pursuant to the regulations.

 

(2)            Only those members of the College who are licensed to practice direct patient care pharmacy or indirect patient care   pharmacy are entitled to vote.

 

 

Officers of the Council

5          (1)            The officers of the Council are those members of the Council elected by the Council at its first meeting in any year to be the president, vice-president and secretary-treasurer of the College, and the immediate past president of the College.

 

(2)            A member of the Council who is elected by the Council to be the vice-president of the College shall, in the ensuing year, become the president of the College.

 

(3)            The president of the College is a member of the Council and need not be otherwise appointed or elected to the Council.

 

            (4)            The term of office for each officer of the Council is one year, continuing until a successor is named by the Council.

 

(5)            The immediate past president of the College is an officer of the College and a voting member of the Council.

 

(6)            In the event of a vacancy in the officers of the College occurring through death, incapacity, resignation or otherwise, the Council shall name a replacement at the first meeting of the Council following the occurrence of the vacancy.

 

 

President

6          (1)            The president of the College is the chief elected official of the College and is responsible for the general supervision of the business and affairs of the College.

 

(2)            The president shall preside at all meetings of the College and of the Council.

 

 

Vice-president

7          The vice-president shall fulfill all of the duties and responsibilities of the president in the event of the absence, inability or incapacity of the president.

 

 

Secretary-Treasurer

8              (1)            It is the responsibility of the secretary-treasurer to exercise a general supervision of the financial affairs of the College, to assist in the preparation of and present the budget, and to provide financial reports to meetings of the Council.

 

    (2)            It is the responsibility of the secretary-treasurer to ensure that minutes of the meetings of the College and the Council are prepared and kept, and that the correspondence of the College is dealt with.

 

 

Other Officers of the College

Registrar

9              (1)            The Registrar is responsible for planning and implementing the programs of the College in accordance with policies and objectives approved by the Council.

 

    (2)            The Registrar is responsible for the duties and responsibilities conferred on the Registrar by the Pharmacy Act and the regulations passed pursuant to it.

 

    (3)            The Registrar shall perform such additional duties as may from time to time be required by the Council.

    (4)            The Registrar is a full time employee of the College who is hired and supervised by the Council.

 

    (5)            Where the office of the Registrar is vacant or the Registrar is absent or unable to act, the president may name a member of the College to act in the place of the Registrar or pending the employment of a new Registrar.

 

    (6)            The Registrar is responsible for the administration of the College and its internal staffing and management.

 

    (7)            No member of the Council shall give instructions to any of the employees of the College except through the Registrar.

   

 

Inspector

10         (1)            It is the duty of an inspector to exercise the powers and perform the duties of an inspector pursuant to the Pharmacy Act.

 

 (2)            The inspectors are responsible to the Registrar for the performance of their duties.

 

 

Auditor

11         (1)            The Council shall appoint an auditor to audit the books and accounts of the College and to comment on the correctness of the annual financial statements of the College.

 

(2)            The auditor holds office from the date of appointment until the appointment of a successor.

 

 

Solicitor

12         (1)            The Council shall appoint a solicitor to advise the College, including the interpretation of the Pharmacy Act and the regulations.

 

(2)            The solicitor holds office from the date of appointment until a successor is appointed.

 

 

Signing Officers

13         The signing officers of the College are any two of the president, the vice-president, the secretary-treasurer, the immediate past president and the Registrar.

 

 

Meetings of the Council

14         (1)            The Council shall meet at least twice in each year.

 

(2)            A meeting of the Council may be held by conference call, video conferencing or other method that ensures that the members of the Council all have the opportunity to participate in the meeting.

 

(3)            The agenda of each meeting of the Council shall be as set out by the president subject to amendment by the members of the council at the opening of the meeting.

 

(4)            A resolution signed by a majority of the members of the Council, for which purpose faxed signatures are sufficient, has the effect of a resolution of the Council.

 

(5)            Any question of order shall be determined by the chair using Robert’s Rules of Order.

 

 

General Meetings

15         (1)            No motion may be presented at any general meeting of the College, except by the Council, unless the proponent has:

 

(a)         given the Registrar notice of the complete text of the motion, the intended mover and the signatures of three persons intending to second it; and

 

(b)         provided the Registrar with a statement explaining the purpose and intent of the motion not exceeding one page in length.

 

(2)            The Registrar shall send a copy of the proposed motion and explanation to each member of the College at least thirty days in advance of the general meeting.

 

(3)            If a motion put forward other than by the Council is passed by the membership at the general meeting, the Council shall report to the next general meeting of the College what action was taken pursuant to the motion, or why action was not taken.

 

 

Election of the Council

16        (1)            Elections for Zone 1 shall be held in the year 2003 and in every second year thereafter.

 

(2)            Elections for Zones 2, 3, 4 and 5 shall be held in the year 2004 and in every second year thereafter.

 

            (3)            There shall be no election in the year 2002 and the term of office of every elected member of the Council is extended to the next election for representatives from that zone.

 

(4)            The term of office of all elected members of the council expires December 31 in the second year after the member is elected, provided that a member continues to hold office until the member’s successor is elected.

 

 

Electoral Zones

17         (1)            For the purposes of electing members of the Council, Nova Scotia is divided into five zones:

 

Zone 1:             Halifax, Lunenburg and Queens Counties

Zone 2:             Cape Breton Island

Zone 3:             Antigonish, Guysborough, Pictou, Colchester and Cumberland Counties and the Municipality of the District of East Hants

Zone 4:             Hants, Kings, Annapolis, Digby, Shelburne and Yarmouth Counties excluding the Municipality of the District of East Hants

Zone 5:             pharmacists employed the majority of their time in a hospital

 

(2)            Three members of the Council shall be elected from  zone 1 and one member of the Council shall be elected from each other zone.

 

(3)            Subject to subsection (4), those voting members who reside in a zone are the members entitled to vote in that zone.

 

(4)            Pharmacists who are employed for the majority of their working time in a hospital are only entitled to vote in zone 5.

 

 

Nominations

18         (1)            The Registrar shall advise all members of the College of their right to nominate the members of the Council before the end of August in an election year.

 

(2)            Any voting member of the College may be nominated.

 

(3)            A member may only be nominated to represent the zone in which the member is entitled to vote.

 

(4)            Nominations shall be signed by at least two members entitled to vote in the zone for which the nomination is made and shall bear the consent of the member nominated.

 

(5)            A nomination, to be valid, must be received by the Registrar before September 30 in an election year.

19         If the number of valid nominations for a zone are equal to or less than the number of members of Council to be elected from that zone, the persons so nominated shall be declared elected.

 

 

Elections

20           (1)                If the number of valid nominations for a zone are greater than the number of members of the Council to be elected from that zone, the Registrar shall conduct an election in the zone.

 

(2)            The Registrar shall mail to each member entitled to vote in the zone a ballot paper showing all of the names of those validly nominated in the zone and specifying how many members are to be elected in the zone.

 

(3)            The members entitled to vote in the zone shall mark the ballot with an X opposite the name of each of the candidates for whom the member desires to vote.

 

(4)            Any ballot marked for more candidates than are to be elected from that zone is void.

 

(5)            Ballots shall be returned to the Registrar in a manner directed by the Registrar that protects the secrecy of the ballot while at the same time permitting the Registrar to ensure that only qualified voters have voted.

 

(6)            Ballots shall be returned to the Registrar by the date specified by the Registrar.

 

(7)            The Registrar, after the last day for submission of ballots, shall open the ballots in the presence of two scrutineers appointed by the Council, count the ballots, and declare the names of the members of Council elected.

 

(8)            In the event of a tie, the Registrar and the scrutineers shall immediately conduct a recount, and if the result is not altered, one scrutineer shall place a ballot marked for each of the candidates who tied in a suitable container, and the other scrutineer shall, without knowing which ballot is which, draw a ballot from the container, and the Registrar shall declare elected the candidate whose name was drawn.

 

 

Failure to Nominate

21         (1)            If the call for nominations does not produce enough members to fill the vacancies on Council from a zone, the members entitled to vote in the zone shall be so advised, and invited to resubmit nominations.

 

 

Vacancies in the Council

22         Where the seat of an elected member of the Council becomes vacant by reason of death, incapacity, resignation or otherwise,

 

(a)            if the vacancy occurs more than six months before an election is scheduled for the zone represented by that member, a special election shall be held in that zone to replace the member within eight weeks after the vacancy occurs, and

 

(b)            if the vacancy occurs less than six months before an election is scheduled for the zone represented by that member, the Council shall appoint a member of the College to complete the term.

 

 

Committees

23         (1)            The Council may appoint standing and special committees in addition to those committees required by the Pharmacy Act.

 

(2)            Committees shall choose their own chairs.

 

(3)            Except for the Executive Committee, committee members shall be members of the College but need not be members of the Council.

 

(4)            The standing committees of the College are:

 

(a)         the Executive Committee;

 

(b)         the Registration Committee;

 

(c)          the Standards of Practice Committee; and

 

(d)         the Awards Committee.

 

 

Executive Committee

24                     (1)        The officers of the Council are the members of the Executive Committee.

 

(2)            The Executive Committee shall take action upon any matter delegated to it by the Council or that requires attention between meetings of the Council.