BY-LAWS OF
INDO-AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC ASSOCIATION, INC
(A Not-for-Profit Corporation)
ARTICLE I: OFFICES
The Principal office of the Corporation shall be located in the City of East Meadow,
County of Nassau, State of New York. The Corporation may also have such office at
such other places within or without the State as the Board of Trustees may from time to
time determine.
ARTICLE II: MEMBERS
SECTION I: QUALIFICATIONS
Admission into residency training in psychiatry and active license to practice medicine in
one’s state of domicile in the United States or Canada, and being an Indo-American
Psychiatric Association (IAPA) member in good standing are required to be a voting
member of IAPA. Completion of residency training in psychiatry and life membership of
IAPA is required to hold an elected office.
SECTION II: CATEGORIES:
1. General Members: Psychiatrists of Indian Origin or Descent (as defined by the
government of India) who have completed the required training in psychiatry, are
board eligible and live in the United States or Canada. The annual fees for general
membership is $50 per calendar year and is not prorated.
2. Life Member: Psychiatrists eligible for General Membership who pay one time
dues of $250.
3. Member-in-Training: Physicians of Indian Origin or Descent who are in an approved
residency training program in psychiatry in the United States or Canada. They can
become General or Life Members at the completion of their training and becoming
board eligible. No fee.
4. Associate Member: Non-psychiatric physicians of Indian Origin or Descent, other
mental health professionals (such as psychologists, social workers, nurse
practitioners, guidance counselors, marriage counselors, substance abuse counselors,
clergy) and psychiatrists from countries other than India, and not of Indian origin or
descent, who live in the United States or Canada. The annual fee for Associate
Member is $25 and for Associate Life member is $150.
5. Corresponding Member: Psychiatrists or mental health professionals of Indian Origin
or Descent who live outside the United States or Canada. The annual fee for
Corresponding Member is $25 and for Corresponding Life Member is $150.
6. Honorary Members: Individuals elected by the Indo-American Psychiatric
Association (IAPA) Executive Council and approved by the Board of Trustees for
outstanding contributions to the field of mental health and/or for promoting the goals
and objectives of Indo-American Psychiatric Association (IAPA). The honorary
members do not pay any dues.
Catergories 1, and 2 are voting members and categories 3, 4, 5 and 6 are non-voting
members.
SECTION II:
Procedure for Admission
1. Completion of application form
2. Payment of applicable fees.
3. Proof of Eligibility (as defined in Article II, Section I: Qualifications).
SECTION III:
Rights and Duties of Members
1. All General Members and Life Members are eligible to vote.
2. All members can attend meetings of the Association, Executive Council and Board of
Trustees.
3. All Life Members can hold elected office.
4. Any category of member can serve on the various Committees at the pleasure of the
President.
5. All members are expected to pay their dues, maintain their state license and adhere to
strict professional conduct.
SECTION IV:
Termination of Membership:
The following will constitute grounds for termination of membership:
1. Members whose dues are in arrears for more than one calendar year.
2. Members whose medical license is suspended or revoked in any State of USA or
Canada.
3. Member is suspended or expelled by American Psychiatric Association (APA) or
Canadian Psychiatric Association (CPA).
4. Member indulges in conduct unworthy of a practicing professional.
The procedure for termination shall be as follows:
The President of Indo-American Psychiatric Association (IAPA) or any member can
bring the above to the attention of the Executive Council. The President will appoint a
committee that submits a report in 15 days and recommends a course of action based on
facts gathered. The Executive Council sends the recommendations to Board of Trustees
after deliberations. The Board of Trustees votes for or against termination. The secretary
keeps minutes of all deliberations and a tally of the votes.
SECTION V:
DUES
The current dues in US $ are as follows:
General Member: $50.00 annually (calendar year)
Life Member: $250 (one time)
Member-in-Training: No annual fee.
Associate Member: $25 annually
Associate Life Member : $150
Corresponding Member: $25 annually
Corresponding Life Member: $150
Honorary Member: Fees waived
Fees can be revised as follows:
The Executive Council will vote on appointing a committee to revise the fees. The
committee will submit a report to the Executive Council in 30 days. The Executive
Council will pass a resolution of the revised dues and ask the Board of Trustees for
approval. If the Board of Trustees approves, the revised dues will be posted on the
Website and the application forms. The secretary will keep minutes of the discussion.
SECTION VII:
Reinstatement
Any member who has been suspended or expelled can apply for reinstatement if the
issues for which he/she was suspended / expelled have been resolved. He/she should
attach a written explanation and written proof regarding the resolution of the issues. The
Executive Council will first discuss if the member can be reinstated and pass it on to the
Board of Trustees for approval. The Life Member will not have to pay any further dues,
but the other membership categories will have to pay the appropriate dues.
ARTICLE III: OFFICERS of the Indo-American Psychiatric Association (IAPA)
Executive Council (EC)
SECTION I:
The following are the elected officers of Executive Council:
President: Assumes the office on June 1, after the end of the annual meeting which is
held in conjunction with the American Psychiatric Association (APA) annual meeting,
generally in May. The term is for two years.
President-elect: Elected for a term of two years and automatically assumes the office of
the President when the term of the outgoing President expires. To be eligible for election,
should have served on the Executive Council for a minimum of four years and preferably
in an elected office in a local chapter for two years.
Secretary: Elected for a term of two years. Preferably should have served as an officer in
a local chapter for two years and on the Executive Council for two years, but there are no
minimum requirements.
Treasurer: Elected for a term of two years. Preferably should have served as an officer
in a local chapter for two years and on the Executive Council for two years, but there are
no minimum requirements.
SECTION II:
The following are the appointed positions on the Executive Council. The time served
count towards eligibility for office of President-elect:
Editor-Appointee: President-elect will appoint a Life Member as an Editor a year before
assuming office so that the Incumbent Editor prepares him/her to take over the Editorial
function when the President-elect assumes office.
Council Members: Maximum three Life Members appointed by the President for a term
of two years. Their time on Executive Council counts towards qualifications for
President-elect’s position. The Council Members will be given specific responsibilities
by the President, like chairing a specific committee or accomplishing a specific task.
They will be considered non-voting members on the Executive Council.
One Member-in-Training (MIT) and Early Career Psychiatrist (ECP) each appointed by
the President for a term of two years. They are non-voting members and their time on
Executive Council does not count towards toward qualifications for the President-Elect’s
position.
The Editor, Three Council Members and the Representatives of Early Career Psychiatrist
(ECP) and Member-in-Training (MIT) shall be nominated by the President, voted upon
by the core Executive Council consisting of the President, President –elect, Secretary,
Treasurer and Immediate Past President, and ratified by the Board of Trustees.
The Editor in consultation with the President can appoint an Editorial Board.
SECTION III:
DUTIES OF THE OFFICERS
The President shall preside at the meetings of the association and/or the Executive
Council. He/ She shall also communicate to the Board of Trustees on such matters and
make such suggestions as may in his/ her opinion tend to promote the mission of the
association and shall perform other duties as are necessarily incident to the office of the
president.
In the event of the absence or disability of the president, the President-Elect shall act in
his/ her place.
The Secretary shall give notice of and attend all meetings of the association, the
Executive Council and the various committees, shall keep record of their proceedings,
shall conduct the correspondence of the association, and keep all records and minutes of
the association(s).
The Treasurer shall collect, receive disburse and account for all sums of money due or
belonging(s) to the association. He/ She shall also furnish the necessary information
about the financial transactions of the association to the Internal Revenue Services by the
due date for filing.
Editor of the newsletter shall be responsible for the publication and mailing of the
newsletter as approved by the council.
Except as provided otherwise in the constitution and By-Laws, the Executive Council
shall have control and management of the day to day affairs of the association and the
newsletter.
The Executive Council shall also have the charge to present an annual operating budget
and explore avenues to raise funds for the annual expenses of the association.
The budget will have to be approved by the Board of Trustees.
ADDITIONAL DUTIES
The President shall oversee day to day operation of the Association and assign duties to
the Council Members and shall from time to time assign additional duties to the elected
officers.
The President shall also appoint Committees as follows:
Outstanding Resident Award Committee.
Outstanding Academician Award Committee.
Outstanding Service Award Committee.
Exemplary Public Sector Psychiatrist Award Committee.
Nominating Committee.
Additional Committees may be appointed for a specific task at the direction of the
Executive Council and with the concurrence of the Board of Trustees.
1. The term will be for 1 year and will begin with the appointment of the said
committee by the President during the first meeting after an annual meeting. of
the EC. In the event of the President leaving office before expiry of term, the
incoming replacement President can dissolve the existing committees and appoint
new committees with a new Chair, except the Nominating Committee which shall
be constituted as described in no. 3 below.
2. The Committees will consist of voting members. However, the Committees can
have other members like Associate, Corresponding, Honorary, Member-inTraining (MIT), or Early Career Psychiatrist (ECP) members in the role of
advisory members to help in the context of their specific areas of their expertise,
but may not vote.
3. The Nominating Committee shall consist of the Immediate Past President as
Chair, President, President-Elect, a member from the Board of Trustees (BOT), a
Chapter President, and one Life Member. The nominating committee shall
nominate candidates for elections to the Executive Council and the Board of
Trustees. Any candidate desiring to contest for office cannot serve on the
nominating committee.
4.
The President may appoint Liaisons to various organizations like the American
Psychiatric Association (APA), Indian Psychiatric Society (IPS), British-Indian
Psychiatric Association (BIPA), etc. The Liaisons term will be for two years,
beginning and ending with the President’s term. In the event of the President
leaving office before expiry of term, the incoming replacement President shall
appoint a new Liaison for the remainder of the term.
ARTICLE V: BOARD OF TURSTEES (BOT) OF THE INDO-AMERICAN
PSYCHIATRIC ASSOCIATION (IAPA)
SECTION I:
The Board of Trustees will have a minimum of 5 members and a maximum of 7
members. The three Immediate Past Presidents (non-elected) will serve on the Board and
four members shall be elected.
SECTION II: Qualifications for nomination to Board of Trustees
1. Service on the Executive Council for at least 6 years or
2. Service on the Executive Council for four years and service in an elected office in
a local chapter for four years.
SECTION III: Term of office:
1. Each Immediate Past President will serve for a term of six years. Thus, every two
years one Immediate Past President will rotate out and the new Immediate Past
President will replace him/her.
2. The term for the elected members will be four years. Two members will be
elected every two years to replace two who will rotate out. In case there are a
total of only 5 total members only one trustee will rotate out after two years.
SECTION IV: Vacancy:
In case one of the trustees leaves before expiry of term, as long as there are five trustees,
the vacancy will not be filled. If there are less than five trustees, an Acting Trustee, who
meets the qualification will be appointed by the Board of Trustees, to be ratified at the
next annual meeting for the remainder of the term or to serve out the term.
SECTION V:
DUTIES OF BOT:
The Board of Trustees will be responsible for:
1. Maintaining the fiscal solvency of the Indo-American Psychiatric Association
(IAPA).
2. Insuring that the goals and objectives of Indo-American Psychiatric Association
(IAPA) are followed by the Executive Council.
3. Allocation of Dues from Life Membership as outlined below.
a.
Dues from Life Membership collected until year 2005 shall be maintained
in a specific account from which money can be borrowed as a loan for
special emergencies with the approval of the Board of Trustees. This
money shall be replaced within the time stipulated by the Board of
Trustees.
b. Dues from Life Membership collected after year 2005 can be used for
annual operating expenses. If the Executive Council cannot raise the
necessary funds, Executive Council can borrow from the funds maintained
in “a”, however, the loan must be replaced when new money comes in..
c. The Executive Council can raise funds and spend the total amount for the
annual operating budget with the approval of the Board of Trustees.
ARTICLE VI :CHAPTERS OF THE Indo-American Psychiatric Association (IAPA)
SECTION I:
The Indo-American Psychiatric Association (IAPA) will strive to have a minimum of one
chapter for each state in the United States of America.
Each chapter president shall be non-voting members of the Indo-American Psychiatric
Association (IAPA) Executive Council and will be invited to the Executive Council
meetings. Their time on the Executive Council will not count towards qualifications for
President-Elect.
SECTION II: Qualifications for being a chapter of the Indo-American Psychiatric
Association (IAPA)
Each chapter shall abide by the Constitution and By Laws of the Indo-American
Psychiatric Association (IAPA).
The President and President Elect of the chapter shall be a life member of the IndoAmerican Psychiatric Association (IAPA).
Each officer of the Chapter shall become a Life Member of Indo-American Psychiatric
Association (IAPA) within 3 months of assuming office.
Each chapter shall hold a meeting at minimum two times a year
Each chapter shall hold elections to coincide with the Indo-American Psychiatric
Association (IAPA) election cycle.
Each chapter shall keep the Indo-American Psychiatric Association (IAPA) updated on
its activities, by providing periodic chapter reports to the Indo-American Psychiatric
Association (IAPA) President.