AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PLASTIC SURGEONS



AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PLASTIC SURGEONSOPERATIONS MANUAL APRIL 2019500 Cummings Center, Suite 4400, Beverly, MA 01915Phone 978-927-8330 ? Fax 978-524-0461 ? aaps@ ? INDEX \e "" \c "1" \z "1033" TABLE OF CONTENTS / INDEX TOC \o "1-3" \u ABBREVIATIONS4 MISSION STATEMENT4VALUES5ACCREDITATION COUNCIL FOR CONTINUING MEDICAL EDUCATION5AMENDMENTS TO CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS6AMERICAN BOARD OF PLASTIC SURGERY6AMERICAN COLLEGE OF SURGEONS7AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION8AMERICAN COUNCIL OF ACADEMIC PLASTIC SURGEONS ACADEMIC SCHOLAR PROGRAM45ANNUAL MEETING 10COMPLIMENTARY ROOMS14EQUIPMENT14EXHIBITS14GUESTS15INFORMATIONAL MATERIALS16PAST PRESIDENT'S LUNCHEON/BREAKFAST16ORDER OF BUSINESS12PROGRAM16REGISTRATION FEES17SOCIAL EVENTS17WOMEN SURGEONS' LUNCHEON 17ARCHIVES18(See Officers, Historian)75AWARDSJames Barrett Brown Award25Leonard R. Rubin AAPS Best Paper Award26BOARDCANNON SOCIETY20CLINICIAN OF THE YEAR21COMMITTEESGENERAL22APPOINTMENTS24AWARDS25CONSTABLE INTERNATIONAL TRAVELING FELLOWSHIP27CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS29DEVELOPMENT29ETHICS30INVESTMENT OVERSIGHT33ISSUES33HONORS34MEMBERSHIP36NOMINATING38PROGRAM41RESEARCH AND EDUCATION45SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM AWARDS COMMITTEE 53BCRF/AAPS Young Clinician & Young Researcher Awards54Resident Travel Award55TECHNOLOGY56WOMEN IN PLASTIC SURGERY56CME44CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY56DIRECTORY58DISCIPLINE59DISCLAIMER59DUES, INITIATION FEES AND ASSESSMENTS60ENDORSEMENTS61EURAPS10, 61HONORARIA63LECTURESKISKADDEN LECTURE63MURRAY LECTURE64NOONE LECTURE64LOGO65MEMBERSHIP66ACTIVE FELLOWS66DISTINGUISHED FELLOWS66LIFE FELLOWS67MINUTES 67ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETING67BOARD OF THE ASSOCIATION MEETINGS67NECROLOGY67 NEW MEMBERS RECEPTION68OFFICERS68HISTORIAN75IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT76PRESIDENT69PRESIDENT-ELECT70SECRETARY72TREASURER74VICE PRESIDENT72PERSONAL APPEARANCES77REIMBURSEMENT POLICY77RESEARCH ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS52RESIDENCY REVIEW COMMITTEE FOR PLASTIC SURGERY9SPECIAL MEETINGS79SUCCESSION TO OFFICE79VOTING80 OPERATIONS MANUALThe Operations Manual shall serve as the official policy and operations guide of the Association in the planning and implementation of all activities of the Association.The Operations Manual is derived from the Constitution and By-Laws of the Association, actions of the Annual Business Meeting or Special Meetings of the Association, actions of the Board, and precedents, tradition or custom where official policy was not determined by the preceding documents or transactions. The sources of policy and operational requirements are listed in descending order of authority.The President-Elect with confirmation of the Board shall maintain the Operations Manual, revising portions of it as needed following each Annual Meeting of the members. Near the end of each term of service, committee chairs are required to review the Operations Manual and provide any revisions to the President-Elect for ratification by the Board and inclusion in the annual Operations Manual update. After approval by the Board, the revised Operations Manual will be distributed by the administrative offices 60 days after the Annual Meeting to all Officers, Trustees and Committee Chairs.In planning and implementing policy, the Operations Manual shall be the first reference source and actions taken will follow established policy. In the absence of established policy, Officers and Trustees may adopt new procedures which may upon a simple majority vote of the Board become operating policy as reflected in the Operations Manual.It shall be the responsibility of the President-Elect to review the Operations Manual prior to each Annual Board Meeting and to recommend revisions of the Operations Manual. It shall be the responsibility of the President-Elect to review the Constitution and By-Laws prior to the Annual Meeting of the Board and in coordination with the Chair of the Constitution and By-Laws Committee make any changes in the Operations Manual to be consistent with the Constitution and By-Laws. These changes will need to be ratified by the Board. This ratification, in appropriate cases, will be contingent upon a favorable vote by the membership regarding Constitution and By-Laws changes. This process is based upon the fact that Constitution and By-Laws changes require a membership vote whereas Operations Manual changes should be consistent with the Constitution and By-Laws but are solely for the Board and committee chairmen and thus require ratification by the Board only.ABBREVIATIONSAACAcademic Affairs CouncilACAPSAmerican Council of Academic Plastic SurgeonsAAMCAssociation of American Medical CollegesAAPSAmerican Association of Plastic SurgeonsABPSAmerican Board of Plastic SurgeryACCMEAccreditation Council for Continuing Medical EducationACGMEAccreditation Council for Graduate Medical EducationACSAmerican College of SurgeonsAMAAmerican Medical AssociationASAPSAmerican Society for Aesthetic Plastic SurgeryASMSAmerican Society of Maxillofacial SurgeonsASPSAmerican Society of Plastic SurgeonsCFASCouncil of Faculty and Academic SocietiesEURAPSEuropean Association of Plastic SurgeonsPSRCPlastic Surgery Research CouncilRRCResidency Review Committee for Plastic SurgeryMISSION STATEMENTThe purpose of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons is to provide scholarly leadership in Plastic Surgery.VALUESAs leaders and members of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons, we are committed to providing high quality education and advancing the care of plastic surgery patients through the following values:Integrity, advocating for high ethical conduct in all we doScholarship, dedicated to the concepts of innovation, research and lifelong learningLeadership, guiding the directions of Plastic SurgeryStewardship, engaged and participating in our Specialty and all aspects of the American Association of Plastic SurgeonsThis statement of objectives shall be published in the Program of the Annual Meeting.ACCREDITATION COUNCIL FOR CONTINUING MEDICAL EDUCATIONThe Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education is composed of representatives from the American Board of Medical Specialties, the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association, the Association for Hospital Medical Education, the Association of American Medical Colleges, the Council of Medical Specialty Societies and the Federation of State Medical Boards. This Committee is responsible for evaluating and accrediting programs in continuing medical education for physicians in the United States.The Scientific Program of the Association is approved for Category I credit, allowing one (1) credit for each hour of attendance at the Scientific Program.The Program Committee Chair shall work with staff to prepare and submit the required documentation for accreditation on a regular basis to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, which will be responsible for providing joint sponsorship for CME for the Association. The Program Committee Chair shall develop the learning objectives for the Annual Meeting based on the post-meeting survey and the member needs assessment survey.AMENDMENTS TO CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWSThe Constitution and By-Laws may be altered, amended, repealed or suspended at any Annual or Special Meeting by a 2/3 majority vote of the members present, provided written or electronic notice of the proposed changes has been given to all members thirty (30) days previous to the meeting. They may also be altered, amended or repealed at an Annual or Special Meeting by a four-fifths majority of the members present and voting without prior circulation of proposed changes.Alterations adversely affecting the Association’s tax-exempt status, legal standing or put the organization at financial risk are subject to additional review by the Board. AMERICAN BOARD OF PLASTIC SURGERYThe American Board of Plastic Surgery, one of the member Boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties, is responsible for the evaluation and certification of specialists in plastic surgery. Founded in 1937 under the leadership of Vilray P. Blair, the Board first met and conducted its examinations at the Annual Meeting of the Association in February 1938, in Galveston, Texas. Since that time the Board has met just before or just following the Annual Meeting of the Association and until 1981 conducted its examinations at the time of the Association meeting.The Association is one of the multiple organizations submitting nominees for election to the ABPS Board of Directors. Each year, following the Annual AAPS Board Meeting, the Secretary shall submit a slate of three (3) nominees for possible election to the ABPS who are Fellows of the Association, who have been certified by the ABPS for a period of ten (10) years or more, who have not previously served as ABPS Directors, and who have fulfilled the requirements established by The ABPS for election of board members (e.g., satisfactory participation in the Qualifying and Certifying examination and active participation in the continuous certification process of the ABPS). Although nominated by the Association and elected to the ABPS Board, the individual serving on the ABPS Board shall not officially represent the Association on the ABPS Board, nor represent the ABPS to the Association. Official communication between ABPS and the Association shall be through the officers of the respective organizations.The ABPS is authorized by the Association to consider conducting its meetings in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the Association. Staff shall incorporate meeting needs of the ABPS along with those of the Association. All expenses in connection with ABPS activities should be borne by the ABPS and billed to its Treasurer.AMERICAN COLLEGE OF SURGEONSThe Advisory Council for Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery, one of eleven Advisory Councils for the Surgical Specialties of the American College of Surgeons, represents the specialty of plastic and reconstructive surgery in the College. The Advisory Council recommends programs for the Clinical Congress and Regional Meetings of the American College of Surgeons and also recommends individuals within our discipline for membership on other committees of the College and committees such as the Residency Review Committee for Plastic Surgery.The Association is represented on the Board of Governors of the College by one (1) member and represented on its Advisory Council for Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery by one (1) member. Each serves a three-year term and may be reappointed for a second three-year term.The Association’s representative on the Board of Governors and the Advisory Council shall submit a written report for the Board agenda four weeks prior to the Annual Board Meeting and may be presented at the Annual Business Meeting if so requested by the President.The Advisory Council for Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery is authorized by the Association to conduct its meetings in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the Association. Staff shall incorporate meeting needs of the Advisory Council along with those of the Association. Requests by the Advisory Council other than for space at the Association meetings shall be presented to the Board at its Interim Meeting prior to the Annual Meeting.When a new Governor or member of the Advisory Council is nominated by the Board of the Association, a nominee and an alternate must be submitted to the American College of Surgeons by the Secretary at the conclusion of the Annual Meeting. The College considers the nomination in the fall and the new Governor, if approved, assumes office at the conclusion of the Clinical Congress in October.AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATIONThe American Association of Plastic Surgeons is one of a large number of professional societies entitled to appoint voting representatives to the House of Delegates of the American Medical Association. At all times a Delegate and Alternate Delegate shall represent the American Association of Plastic Surgeons and shall submit a report in writing four weeks prior to the Interim and Annual meetings of the Board so it can be included in the Board agenda which is distributed in advance of the Board meeting. In order to provide skilled and experienced representation, both Delegate and Alternate Delegate shall ordinarily be appointed for a period of at least six (6) years. The terms of service of the Delegate and Alternate Delegate are not limited. The American Association of Plastic Surgeons shall be responsible for the expenses of its Delegates when attending AMA meetings. Delegates must have been members of the American Medical Association for at least two (2) years immediately preceding the meeting of the House in which they are to serve.The Delegate and Alternate Delegate shall review all correspondence between the American Association of Plastic Surgeons and the American Medical Association, particularly pending any likely business of the House of Delegates, and shall advise the Officers and Trustees of items requiring consideration and direction to the two Delegates.In addition to representation in the House of Delegates of the AMA, the Association is one of four specialty societies, along with the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and the American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons, constituting the Section Council on Plastic, Reconstructive and Maxillofacial Surgery of the American Medical Association. Section Councils, representing each of twenty-eight specialty areas, provide for the deliberation of scientific, educational interests and concerns of the specialty disciplines within the AMA. The Delegate and Alternate Delegate shall serve on the Section Council.Meeting expenses of the Section Council shall be the responsibility of the specialty societies represented on the Council. Each Section Council shall elect a Chairman and Vice Chairman from its membership.RESIDENCY REVIEW COMMITTEE FOR PLASTIC SURGERYThe Residency Review Committee for Plastic Surgery, responsible to the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, is charged with the evaluation and accreditation of plastic surgery residency programs in the United States.Three (3) appointees each from the American Medical Association, the American College of Surgeons and the American Board of Plastic Surgery, a resident, a public member, a representative from the American Osteopathic Association, and staff from the ACGME constitute the Residency Review Committee for Plastic Surgery.AMERICAN COUNCIL OF ACADEMIC PLASTIC SURGEONSAlthough meetings of Directors of Plastic Surgery Residency Programs were held on an ad hoc basis (prior to the Annual Meeting of the Association in 1964 and at the time of the Plastic Surgery Research Council Meeting in Indianapolis in 1970), no organization of Program Directors existed until 1971. At that time, just prior to the Fiftieth Annual Meeting of the Association in Williamsburg, a meeting of Program Directors was held. A proposal to meet annually just prior to and with the Association, and responsibility for a portion of the first morning Scientific Program were agreed upon. In 1985, the Training Program Directors reorganized as a group entitled the Association of Academic Chairmen of Plastic Surgery. In April 2011, the name was changed to the American Council of Academic Plastic Surgeons (ACAPS).Responsibility for the agenda of the ACAPS meeting at the Annual Meeting of the Association is the full responsibility of the ACAPS. Planning ACAPS meeting content during the AAPS Annual Meeting is a shared responsibility between the Program Committee of the Association and the ACAPS and is devoted to a topic of interest and importance to prerequisite and requisite education in plastic surgery.The Secretary shall extend Association meeting invitations to members of the ACAPS who are not members of the Association. Members of the Association and guests shall be welcome at meetings of ACAPS.EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION OF PLASTIC SURGEONSIn recognition of the close relationship we have had with the European Association of Plastic Surgeons since its founding, AAPS would strengthen that bond with an annual exchange of officers to attend the other’s respective meeting. In the future, the AAPS Immediate Past President, President and President-Elect of a given year will attend the EURAPS meeting that same year as their guests, just as AAPS will accommodate the attending EURAPS officer(s). As has been the practice for some time, the winner of the Leonard R. Rubin Award (Best Paper of the AAPS Annual Meeting) will present that paper at the EURAPS meeting the following year. Similarly, the Best Paper of the EURAPS meeting will be presented at the next AAPS meeting. ANNUAL MEETINGMembers of the Association shall meet annually, at such convenient time and place as the Board may designate. Sturgis Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure will be followed at all meetings of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons (meetings of members and/or Board).Sites for future Annual Meetings of the Association are selected in advance by the Board based on proposals obtained by staff from a list of Board-recommended venues. Time for the Annual Meeting will be selected over an eight-week period, from the middle of March until the middle of May. Special consideration will be made to assure that the time for the Annual meeting shall not conflict with religious holidays and Mother’s Day. Every effort will be made to keep the meeting at a distance from other society meetings including the EURAPS meeting to allow full participation at those meetings by interested plastic surgeons. Consideration should also be given to the locations of the other plastic surgery meetings in a given year. Staff shall prepare recommendations for the Board for future annual meeting sites that include specific hotels, recreational activities, geographical, historical and cultural features of interest that would be of importance in selection of the site by the Board. At the recommendation of the Secretary at each Annual Meeting, the Board will make a final determination as to the time and place of future meetings with significant input from the Executive Director and Meeting Manager.Upon selection of a site for the meeting by the Board for a forthcoming meeting, staff shall negotiate a contract between host hotel and the Association that specifies dates of the meeting, number of guest rooms, meeting rooms and major functions and breakout rooms during the course of the meeting.The Association will fund up to two site visits by the future President (in consultation with the Board) who will make arrangements along with the central office.The Annual Meeting may include a Welcoming Reception, President’s Reception and Banquet in addition to the Scientific Program.Staff shall prepare a program outline and budget for the Annual Meeting and shall present it to the Board for approval at the Interim Board Meeting.At least six (6) months prior to the time of the Annual Meeting, staff shall see to it that hotel brochures and reservation forms are disseminated to the membership. Appropriate hotel contact information shall also be sent to those individuals responsible for making meeting arrangements for those organizations or committees authorized to hold their meetings in conjunction with the Association meeting.Written or electronic notice of all meetings of the members, Annual or Special, shall be sent to each member at least four (4) weeks prior to the time fixed for the meeting, but at any meeting, at which due notice is given, a future Special Meeting may be called by a two-thirds vote of those present and without the usual notice of four (4) weeks.Not less than five percent (5%) of the total voting membership of the Association must be in attendance to constitute a quorum. According to Sturgis rules, if no one questions a quorum, one exists. All questions submitted to the meeting should be determined by a majority vote of the members present (provided a quorum is present), except as herein otherwise provided. Upon a request of any member, the vote upon any question shall be by written or electronic ballot.Only members of the Association may attend the Annual Business Meeting, except upon rare occasions and by special vote of the members present ORDER OF BUSINESS: 1.Reading of the Minutes2.Report of the President3.Report of the President-Elect4.Report of the Vice President5.Report of the Secretary6.Report of the Treasurer7.Report of the Historian8.Executive Management Report9.Reports of Committees10. Report of Representatives 11.Old Business12.Announce Location of Next Year’s Annual Meeting13. New Business 14. Election of Active Fellows15. Report of Nominating Committee 16.Election of OfficersThe President of the Association may invite, with or without the payment of guest fees, such individuals as he/she may deem important to the success of the Annual Scientific Meeting.Residents and Fellows in active plastic surgery training are invited to the Annual Meeting.In case there is not a quorum at any Annual Meeting, the Officers shall continue to act until their successors have been duly elected, which may then be conducted by electronic ballot.The Secretary shall submit the Board nominations for Active membership in the Association to the membership at the Annual Meeting for voting by written ballot. A three-fourths affirmative vote of the voting members present at the Annual Meeting is necessary for election to the membership.Members present at the Annual Meeting of the Association shall elect the Officers, voting by written ballot where there are two (2) or more candidates for an office. Officers’ terms of office shall begin upon adjournment of the Annual Meeting.In case of a vacancy occurring in any of the elective offices by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the vacancy may be filled by election by the Board for the remainder of the term of office until the next Annual Meeting of the members.The President shall preside at all meetings of the Association and of the Board. The President does not routinely vote on business matters before the Board or membership but does cast a vote to break a tie vote on any question at any meeting of the members or Board. It is the policy of the Association to limit meetings held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the Association to only those organizations to which the Association actually elects or appoints representatives or with which the Association has a direct relationship. These include the American Board of Plastic Surgery, the Residency Review Committee for Plastic Surgery, the Advisory Council for Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery of the American College of Surgeons, the American Council of Academic Plastic Surgeons, the Academic Affairs Council, and the Journal of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Other associated meetings are possible with Board approval.Other organizations or groups wishing committee or other meetings related to the time of the Annual Meeting, either before or after, or during the course of the Annual Meeting, must request and obtain the authorization of the Board at the Interim Board Meeting before Annual Meeting arrangements have been made. No formal activities shall be planned to compete with the Opening Ceremonies, the scientific sessions, the Welcome Reception and the President’s Reception and Banquet.ANNUAL MEETING - COMPLIMENTARY ROOMSThe President shall receive a complimentarytwo-room suite or equivalent at the Annual Meeting. Staff shall negotiate venue contracts to include complimentary accommodations for the President.ANNUAL MEETING – EQUIPMENTStaff is responsible for the provision of all equipment for the Annual Meeting. Equipment may include audiovisual equipment and special needs and furnishings. Equipment needs are to be determined by consultation with the Program Committee Chair, the Secretary and individuals responsible for the conduct of other meetings authorized by the Board at the time of the Annual Meeting. Particular attention should be directed to providing for the following:Registration Area;Board and Authorized Committee Rooms and Function Rooms; Speaker Ready Room; and Scientific Session Room. Staff shall arrange to have the Opening Ceremony filmed in addition to still photos of the Board meeting, the Opening Ceremonies, the Kiskadden, Murray and Noone Lecturer, and the banquet. These films and photographs shall be forwarded to the Historian. The Historian shall prepare a report to be presented to the Board at its interim meeting and subsequently forwarded to the Archives of Plastic Surgery at the Countway Library. ANNUAL MEETING – EXHIBITSThe Annual Meeting allows exhibition by approved vendors who have submitted applications in advance and who have agreed to abide by the rules and regulations of exhibition set forth by the Association. Exhibition will be allowed only in the Exhibit Hall, during a set schedule of hours which will be established by staff. The Association reserves the right to deny exhibition space to any vendor whose product or offering is deemed inappropriate for presentation at the Annual Meeting.ANNUAL MEETING – PROFESSIONAL AND SOCIAL AND SPECIAL GUESTSAll newly elected members shall receive Provisional Membership Status and shall be expected to pay an initiation fee and annual membership dues immediately after election to membership. In order to move from Provisional Membership Status to Active Member status, newly elected members must attend the next year’s Annual Meeting to receive their Membership Certificate and be welcomed by their fellow AAPS members during the Introduction of New Members during the Opening Ceremonies. Participation in the Opening Ceremony where new members are introduced and welcomed into the Association is both an honor and an obligation. In extraordinary circumstances, a one-year waiver of this requirement may be granted provided the Provisional Member has submitted to the Board, in advance, a formal request for an excused absence citing the specific reasons for the waiver. If the Board approves the request, a second year of Provisional Membership shall be granted. The AAPS recognizes that there may be certain times when an additional exception to the attendance requirement may be necessary, and on a case by case basis, a third year exception may be made. In no case will Provisional Membership be extended on an ongoing basis; failure to attend an Annual Meeting following election shall result in revocation of Membership. Reapplication for membership shall not be allowed.All Residents and Fellows in active training programs in plastic surgery shall be invited to attend the Annual Meeting for a resident registration fee which shall be the same as the spouse/guest fee. Guests at the Annual Meeting may be spouses or their equivalent. Other guests may be invited with degrees in medicine or degrees in the health care field and must register at the appropriate professional level. Any exception must be approved by the President or in his/her absence or unavailability or by his/her direction, by the President-Elect or the Secretary of the Association.The President of the Association shall have the privilege of inviting, with or without the payment of registration fees, such individuals as he/she may deem important to the success of the Annual Scientific Meeting. The President may invite as many as ten (10) guests to the Presidential Reception and Banquet without charge.The President may invite additional guests to the Presidential Reception and Banquet, the fee for same to be determined by the Treasurer, Local Arrangements Chair and Secretary so as to represent as closely as possible the expense to the Association for the Presidential Reception and Banquet.ANNUAL MEETING - INFORMATION MATERIALWritten or electronic notice of all meetings of the members, Annual or Special, shall be sent to each member at least four (4) weeks prior to the time fixed for the meetings, but at any meeting, of which due notice is given, a Special Meeting may be called by a two-thirds vote of those present and without the usual notice of four (4) weeks.ANNUAL MEETING - PAST PRESIDENTS' LUNCH OR BREAKFASTThe Past Presidents' Lunch or Breakfast is conducted at the Annual Meeting. Staff provides invitations to all living Past Presidents and to the President of the Association. Staff will secure an appropriate room for the affair. No agenda is prepared.ANNUAL MEETING – PROGRAMNotification of online availability of the Preliminary Program of the Annual Meeting of the Association shall be distributed by email as well as a post card reminder to all Fellows of the Association and pre-registered guests sixty (60) days prior to the Annual Meeting. The Preliminary Program and abstracts shall be provided to all Fellows of the Association by email at least 60 days before the Annual Meeting. The printed program shall be distributed to attendees at the time of the Annual Meeting and upon request, mailed to members who were not in attendance. Material to be included in the Program, in addition to the Scientific Program, shall include information for the cover; title page; photograph and name of the President; Officers and Trustees; names of new members; the objective of the Association; Past Presidents and sites of previous meetings of the Association; the names of Fellows deceased since the last Annual Meeting; committees of the Association; a list of recipients of the Honorary Award, Distinguished Fellowship, Clinician of the Year, James Barrett Brown Award, Leonard R. Rubin Award, the ACAPS Goldwyn Award, the Kiskadden, Murray and Noone Lecturers, Academic Scholars and Researchers of the Year; a listing of the Officers and Directors of the American Board of Plastic Surgery; the Residency Review Committee; and the Advisory Council for Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery of the American College of Surgeons; officers of EURAPS and dates of their future meetings, site and dates of AAPS future meetings; Annual Meeting information on Special Meetings, the social program of the meeting, registration information; the roster of Fellows; a geographical directory of Fellows; and notice of CME Credit for Scientific Meeting attendance; disclaimer of responsibility; and an appropriate accreditation statement .The mission statement and a page of information about EURAPS (offices, mailing address, dates and sites of future meeting, etc.) should also be included.ANNUAL MEETING - REGISTRATION FEESThe President may invite as many as ten (10) guests to the Presidential Reception and Banquet without charge.The President may invite additional guests to the Presidential Reception and Banquet, the fee for same to be determined so as to represent as closely as possible the additional expense to the Association. All individuals participating in the Annual Meeting must pay a registration fee, although Residents and Fellows may pay an adjusted fee. Life Members registration fee is waived; they may pay purchase a ticket for the Presidential Banquet.ANNUAL MEETING - SOCIAL EVENTSSpecial guests may be invited to attend clinical meetings, luncheons, and dinners at the time of Special or Annual Meetings only by invitation of members of the Association through the Secretary of the Association. The Welcoming Reception includes all individuals registered for the Annual Meeting.WOMEN SURGEONS’ LUNCHEONA luncheon for all women surgeons attending the Annual Meeting of the Association shall be held each year. ARCHIVESSubject to approval by the Board, the Historian shall maintain and safeguard Archives of the Association. The Historian shall collect the films and still photos from the designated audiovisual staff and photographer for each Annual Meeting and forward the materials for inclusion in the Archives of Plastic Surgery at the Countway Library. The Historian will write a chronicle of the activities of the Association during his tenure in office. This will be submitted to the Board annually at its interim meeting.The Historian shall be the Association representative on the Archives Committee of the ASPS. The Historian shall receive the agenda book and minutes of each meeting of the Board. (See further responsibilities of the Historian.)BOARD The government and management of the Association is entrusted to the Officers of the Association and to the Trustees collectively referred to as the Board. Sturgis’ Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure will be operative at all Board meetings. The Trustees shall consist of five (5) members elected at large, and the Immediate Past President as the 6th Trustee. The Trustees together with the President-Elect, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and Historian and a EURAPS member shall be entitled to vote. The President may vote in the case of a tie vote. The term of office of the Trustees elected at large shall be for three (3) years with the terms staggered such that the number of Trustees at large elected at each Annual Meeting will be sufficient to provide a total of thirteen (13) members for the Board (6 Officers, 6 Trustees, and 1 EURAPS representative). A member who has previously served as a Trustee may be re-elected after an interval of one (1) year off the Board.In an effort to add continuity to committees, in addition to serving as a member of the Board for a three-year term, each Trustee will be assigned a specific oversight position on a committee when they assume their role on the Board. This oversight position will be held during the three-year term of each Trustee and will be assigned to the new Trustee upon election. The oversight roles are: Investment Oversight CommitteeMembership CommitteeIssues CommitteeResearch and EducationScientific ProgramMembers of the Association shall meet annually, at such convenient time and place as the Board may designate. Special meetings of the members may be called by the Board and shall be called whenever one-fifth of the total voting membership shall so request. Such Special Meetings shall be held at such time and place as the Board may designate.The Annual Meeting of the Board shall be held at the time of the Annual Meeting of the members. Special Meetings of the Board may be held at such time and place as may be designated by the Board. The President may, whenever he/she deems it expedient, and shall, whenever requested to do so by two (2) members of the Board, call a Special Meeting of said Board, specifying in such call the time, place and objective of holding such meeting.Notice of the annual and interim meetings of the Board shall be sent to each member at least thirty (30) days prior to the time fixed for the meeting. Special meetings require at least ten (10) days notice.The Association representative to the Board of Governors of the American College of Surgeons and the Chairman of the Advisory Council for Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery may be invited to make reports to the Board. The Association shall require written reports from all representatives and committee chairs on at least an annual basis. The President may request any representative or committee chair to present oral reports to the Board or membership.Seven (7) members of the Board shall constitute a quorum. The President of the Association shall serve as Chair and the Secretary shall serve as Secretary of the Board.The President-Elect shall serve as Parliamentarian of the Board. The Board shall have the power to act as the executive body of the Association, to fill the unexpired term of any vacancy occurring in the Board. The Board will also have the responsibility to make recommendations to the Honors Committee for the Honorary Award and Distinguished Fellowship and will have the sole power of electing such candidates as presented by the Honors Committee to the Interim Meeting of the Board. The recipients of the Honorary Award and the Distinguished Fellowship shall be presented to the membership at the Annual Scientific Meeting but the recipients shall not give a formal presentation. The Board shall have the power to ratify candidates for Active Fellowships processed by the Membership Committee; and to make rules and regulations consistent with the Constitution and By-Laws of the Association for the conduct of its own meetings and the management of the affairs of the Association.All disbursements and investments of the Association's funds are to be made in consultation with the Treasurer with the approval of the Board. Changes in financial advisor or investment guidelines require the approval of the Board; investments decisions in excess of $50,000 require the review and consent of the Treasurer and Chair of the Finance Committee.The slate of proposed candidates for Active Fellowship shall be submitted to the Board. The Board may delete from this slate the names of candidates for membership but cannot submitadditional names nor may they substitute one rank position for another. The Board approved membership slate shall then be submitted by the Secretary to the Membership for vote by written ballot at the Annual Business Meeting.THE CANNON SOCIETYThe Cannon Society consists of those members of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons who are sixty-five year old, whether retired or receiving income from a surgical practice. Although it was initially inspired by a suggestion of Past President and Distinguished Fellow Bradford Cannon, M.D., who felt there should be a dinner gathering of all senior plastic surgeons and spouses “who had been members of the Association for a third of a century” at the Annual Meeting of the Association, the membership, by vote, felt that the membership should be more inclusive. The first dinner took place in 1992, organized by Past President Maurice J. Jurkiewicz, M.D. and has been held annually since that time. The group has remained informal, without officers or structure.? A newsletter is regularly distributed to all members older than 65 providing the details and cost of the dinner.? The cost varies with the location of the meeting and the venue and is held the evening of the opening ceremonies. The relationship to the Association has remained informal, but the Board of the Association has facilitated the Cannon Society in important ways. Cannon Society members are invited to the Welcome Reception and the Opening Ceremony of the Association meeting without registering for the professional meeting; they may attend the Association Dinner Dance by purchasing tickets. The National Office has allowed the dinner venue to be billed through them by being responsible for contracting the venue, though the dinner itself is self-supporting.CLINICIAN OF THE YEARThe Clinician of the Year, first selected in 1974, and chosen each year by the President of the Association for the Annual Meeting at which he/she presides, shall be a Fellow of the Association particularly recognized for significant clinical achievement and experience in the field of plastic and reconstructive surgery. Customarily the recipient's presentation will report his/her long experience and the results of treatment in the major area of clinical interest.The President shall present a plaque, to be obtained by the administrative office, to the Clinician of the Year commemorating this honor.The Program Committee Chair, after consultation with the President, shall allot a period of time for presentation of the address by the Clinician of the MITTEES – GENERALNew Committee chairs and members shall be appointed prior to the Annual Meeting with the exception of committee members appointed by the new Vice President. Prior to assumption of office, the President and the President-Elect shall plan committee appointments, seeking the advice of the outgoing President and outgoing Committee Chairs prior to the Annual Meeting in order that Committee work may begin without delay. As soon as possible after the Vice President is elected, his/her appointees should be added to the committee membership. As a matter of policy, except for extenuating circumstances, a chair of a committee should not serve in that capacity for longer than a year. Individuals serving as members of a particular committee should be observed for leadership qualities. An assessment of the current committee members and structure should be made to the President-Elect by outgoing committee chairs for use in appointing new committee members and the chair of that particular committee. Committee Chairs shall be asked to complete an evaluation form for their committee members and committee members shall be asked to complete an evaluation form for the Committee Chair. On an annual basis, the administrative office will maintain a chronological list of all Board and committee rosters to be used as a reference as each officer is in a position to assign committee appointments.All committee chairs shall submit written reports to the administrative office at least four weeks prior to the Interim and Annual Meetings of the Board. When requested to do so, the Chairs of the, Research and Education, Membership and Program Committees for the forthcoming Annual Meeting, and other committee chairs, shall present their reports in person to the Board at the Interim and Annual Meeting.All committee chairs shall be prepared to present their reports in person to the Board at the Annual Meeting, and if called upon to do so, to summarize their report to the membership at the Annual Business Meeting of the mittee reports shall be on a form that shall contain: 1) a summary of the charges of the committee, 2) work accomplished by the committee, 3) unfinished work of the committee, 4) recommendations for future committee work and 5) recommended changes in Operations Manual at end of year. All written reports and exhibits are to be distributed with the agenda in advance of the Board meeting. Late reports are discouraged.For all committees, except the Nominating Committee, it is the Chair's responsibility to review the Operations Manual and to suggest any appropriate changes at least 30 days prior to the Annual Meeting to the President-Elect. These proposals will be reviewed and confirmed by the Board at the time of the Annual Meeting.Upon assuming office, each new President shall prepare charges to each committee that shall include general and specific tasks for the year's work. The President-Elect, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer shall be provided with copies of charges to committees, and the list of committee assignments shall be distributed to the membership at the first mailing following the Annual Meeting. At the time of the Annual Meeting, new committee chairs and members should be in place with the exception of new committee appointees of the Vice President. Each chair should be given an updated version of the Operations Manual and Constitution and By-Laws in addition to charges from the President. All Board members also should receive the new Operations Manual, Constitution and By-Laws and committee charges.Copies of the last three years’ committee reports will be sent to committee chairs and new committee members within 30 days after new committees are appointed. The chairs of the Academic Scholar Committee and the Research and Education Committee may select an appropriate number of additional members. For all other committees, the chair (to be) will recommend new members for the President-Elect’s review and input such that the composition of the new committee shall be complete prior to the Annual Meeting. At the Annual Meeting, the President-Elect and Vice President will meet with new committee chairs to discuss plans and charges for the next year. COMMITTEES – APPOINTMENTSSubject to approval by the Board, the President shall appoint such committees deemed necessary and proper with such duties as may be designated. The committee chairs and all members are selected by the President with some notable exceptions. These include the Nominating Committee and single members of the Program, Constitution and By-Laws, Issues, Ethics, Membership and Research & Education Committees. On these committees, the President-Elect and Vice President each have a single appointee. Service to AAPS and financial contribution to AAPS should be considered when making these appointments.In addition, each Trustee will be assigned to a committee during their three-year term on the Board as follows: Investment Oversight Committee, Issues Committee, Membership Committee, Program Committee, and Research and Education Committee.The Committees of the Association are as follows:AwardsJohn D. Constable International Traveling FellowshipConstitution and By-Laws Development EthicsInvestment OversightIssuesHonors Joint AAPS/EURAPSMembershipNominating Scientific ProgramResearch and Education TechnologyScientific Program Awards CommitteeWomen in Plastic SurgeryCOMMITTEES - AWARDSThe Awards Committee shall consist of a Chair, (the Vice President,) and four additional members, each of whom shall be appointed by the President for a one-year term. ThePresident's invitation of appointment shall include the responsibility for evaluation of all the papers at the Annual Scientific Meeting.In addition to specific charges to the Committee the President, the Awards Committee shall have the responsibility for selecting the James Barrett Brown Award and for selecting the recipient of the Leonard R. Rubin Award for the best scientific paper presented at the Annual Meeting. James Barrett Brown AwardThe James Barrett Brown Award was established in 1973 by the Board in response to a proposal by Mrs. James Barrett Brown in memory of her husband, a Past President of the Association. The Award, designed to stimulate excellence in the field of plastic surgery as exemplified by research and writing, offers an annual prize of two thousand dollars ($2,000.00), which is donated by the James Barrett Brown Foundation to the Association. Mrs. Brown delegated responsibility for the choice of the award winner to the Association and asked that the prize, together with a suitable plaque, be awarded at the Annual Meeting.The first James Barrett Brown Award was presented in 1974. It had been customary for the Awards Committee to select the six best papers published in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery or Annals of Plastic Surgery in the calendar year immediately preceding the Annual Meeting and then to poll the membership to obtain their ranking in order of preference of these papers. Beginning in 2017, a new process was instituted that allowed members to select the best Plastic Surgery scientific article in ANY peer-reviewed journal, through an online member nomination process. The online nomination process will be available to members between December 1 and January 15, prior to the annual meeting. Members may nominate their own article, though the system allows only one nomination per member. Members may change their nomination up to the nomination closing date. Multiple reminder e-mails to members, containing the link to the nomination site will be sent between December 1 and January 15. The online nomination form will include the title, authors, journal, issue, pages, PubMed ID, and most importantly an explanation from the nominating member as to why this paper should be selected as the best Plastic Surgery paper of the year.Member nominations are supplemented by the committee also reviewing the top 20 articles published in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery during the prior year, as identified by the Editor, based on metrics such as number of online views, social media sharing, Altmetric score, etc. This list of top 20 articles shall be requested from the Editor of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery the first week of January.Immediately after online nominations are closed, the Chair of the Awards Committee, working with staff, shall compile a listing of all member-nominated articles, together with the top 20 articles from Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery from the prior year. All members of the committee will then rank this combined list, and the list will be sorted by average committee member rank and submitted to the committee for their final selection of the top 6 papers to be submitted to the membership of the Association for final selection of the winning paper. The goal is make the final selection by the end of February, so that the award-winning author can be notified by the Chair, in confidence, of the winning of the Award, allowing that he/she may be present at the meeting and give a brief presentation. To win the award, the paper must be presented at the Annual Meeting. If the invited author is unable to present, the award will be given to the next highest ranked article.The Secretary shall invite members of Dr. Brown's family whom Dr.?Brown's widow might designate, to attend the Annual Meeting as guests of the Association to participate in presentation of the Award. An annual acknowledgment of each year's gift shall be made to the Board of the James Barrett Brown Foundation administered by the Mercantile Trust Company of St. Louis, Missouri.The Program Committee Chair shall allot a period of time for acceptance of the Award and for a brief review of the work reported in the winning paper. The winner should be kept secret by the Awards Committee until the presentation during the Opening Ceremonies.Leonard R. Rubin AAPS Best Paper AwardThe Awards Committee shall select the best scientific paper presented at the Annual Meeting. The awardee will be expected to present the paper at the Annual Meeting of the EuropeanAssociation of Plastic Surgeons (EURAPS) the following year. The awardee will receive a stipend of up to $4,000 to defray travel expense to the EURAPS meeting.The previous year’s Rubin Award winner will be presented at the Annual Meeting by the President-Elect who was Vice President chairing the Awards Committee.At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Awards Committee, and these changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review and confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual MITTEES - JOHN D. CONSTABLE INTERNATIONAL TRAVELING FELLOWSHIPThe Constable International Traveling Fellowship Committee is a standing committee and shall be appointed annually by the President of AAPS. The Chair of the committee will be a three-year appointment with the other members rotating annually. 1. Announcements twice a year in PRS and the Annals of Plastic Surgery letting the membership as well as potential candidates know about the Constable Fellowship. Acknowledgement of the availability of the fellowship in every AAPS mailer. Our sister European society (EURAPS) will be notified of the availability of this Fellowship and the fellowship announcement will be emailed to their members as well as posted on their website.2. Committee should meet at least two months ahead of the national meeting in order to select the next year’s fellow.3.At the annual AAPS meeting (5 minutes) an announcement made by the chairman of the committee or the designate of the selection of the following year’s recipient. This should include a photo of Dr. Constable, a description of the mission of the Fellowship, and a photo and brief history of the new recipient.4. Invitation to the AAPS meeting at no charge to the annual fellow.5.Whenever possible, have the Constable fellow be in North America for their fellowship around the time of the annual AAPS meeting so that they may attend and present their experience to the Board. If absent, the fellow should present their experience in writing.Intent of FellowshipThe Fellowship is intended to provide an opportunity for international plastic surgeons to come to North America under the auspices of the AAPS. This Fellowship will be conducted over a period of 6-12 weeks to improve the Fellow’s understanding of American plastic surgery and to promote good will and academic interchange among surgeons of the international community and American surgical community. Visiting surgeons will be in North America as observers under the sponsorship of members of the AAPS.EligibilityCandidates must be fully trained in their respective country in plastic surgery, a member in good standing of their national society. They must be able to communicate well in both written and spoken English and must be sponsored by two members of their national society where appropriate. All candidates will be required to submit: A letter from the candidate describing their proposed program and academic/educational interests and what they would hope to bring back to their countryA Current Curriculum VitaeLetter from sponsor at their institution to include an indication how the award would benefit their countryTwo letters of recommendation from surgeons in the candidate’s national societyList of Institutions they plan to visitInstitutions interested in hosting a Constable International Traveling Fellow will be asked to submit: A planned curriculum for the visiting fellow.Availability of personal support (housing/food) during the visit.Selection ProcessThe Fellowship will be advertised in PRS and Annals of Plastic Surgery. Our sister European society (EURAPS) will be notified as to the annual availability of this Fellowship.A standing committee appointed by the President of AAPS will review the candidate and host applications. The committee will select the recipients of the Fellowship and the host institutions where the Fellow will visit. Every effort will be made to choose recipients of the international Fellowship from varied geographic areas. One Fellowship per year will be awarded under the auspices of the AAPS in the amount of $10,000, which is intended to cover the international and national transportation obligations for a successful fellowship. The Chair will notify the recipient of the Fellowship and the host institution. The recipient will be requested to submit a written report to the AAPS Board at the conclusion of the Fellowship outlining the details of the learning process and content as well as providing suggestions for improving the educational and social MITTEES - CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWSThe Constitution and By-Laws Committee shall consist of a Chair appointed by the President and two additional members, each of whom shall be appointed by the President-Elect and Vice President for a one-year term.In addition to specific charges to the committee by the President, the Constitution and By-Laws Committee shall review the Constitution and By-laws annually and collate suggested changes from the membership.Proposed amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws shall be a part of the report of the Committee to the Board at its Interim Meeting and requires Board approval in preparation for presentation at the Annual Business Meeting for membership vote. A draft of proposed amendments shall be submitted to the membership for review at least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting.At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Constitution and By-laws Committee, and these changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review and confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual MITTEES – DEVELOPMENTThe Chair of the Development Committee will be appointed by the President and will serve a two year term. The members of the Development Committee will consist of the AAPS Board (that is the Officers of the Association and the Trustees collectively). The Chair will have the option to appoint additional members to the committee as he/she sees fit. The initiatives and activities of the committee will appear as an agenda item for discussion at each meeting of the Board. The Development Committee will develop strategies and methods to raise money for the activities of the society (other than operational and annual meeting activities) including the Academic Scholar Funds, the International Traveling Fellowship, the Lectures and such other projects as may be approved by the Board. The sources of the money raised should be from new and existing members; previous awardees of scholarships and fellowships; legacy bequests and trusts; families of named funds, fellowships and lectures; vendors, foundations, and such other sources as might be approved by the Board. The monies raised by these activities will be kept in the fund indicated with the gift and, if not specified or restricted, will be apportioned as approved by the Board into the various alternatives. The Investment Oversight Committee will manage these funds. COMMITTEES – ETHICSMembershipThe Ethics Committee shall have 9 members, 3 of whom will be appointed yearly from a broadly representative cross section of demographic assets of the membership. The members will be appointed by the president, president elect, and vice president. The term of membership shall be 3 years. The committee will vote yearly to elect the new chair from the members who are on the committee for their second year. That individual will be the chair in the 3rd year of his/her term on the committee. General Functions of the CommitteeIn addition to specific charges to the Committee by the President, the ethics committee shall manage the investigation and sanction recommendations of disciplinary actions. The Ethics Committee will report its findings and recommendations to the Board of the Association who will make the final disciplinary decision. (Article VII) In addition, the Ethics Committee may be asked by the Membership Committee to advise on ethical allegations regarding new candidates for membership.The Code of Ethics The AAPS shall share the ASPS code of ethics and post it on the AAPS web siteMechanism of Disciplinary Decision Making1. If AAPS members who are also ASPS members are felt by the AAPS ethics committee to have possibly violated the code of ethics, the AAPS ethics chair will send a request for a review of the case to the chair of the ASPS ethics committee who will put the complaint against the member through the ASPS ethics, judicial, and trustee process. If the member is found to have violated the code of ethics of the ASPS, and if that member receives a public sanction by the ASPS, the AAPS ethics committee will then meet and decide if further sanctions are required by AAPS. If the AAPS ethics committee derives a different opinion than that produced by the ASPS judicial process on any given matter, the AAPS ethics committee will act on its own decisions on a case by case basis.2. If the AAPS member in question is not a member of ASPS, then the ethics committee of the AAPS will investigate and adjudicate on a member’s behavior on a case by case basis. Possible SanctionsSanctions to members of the AAPS include but are not restricted to the following:a) Private letter of sanction. A written letter of censure advising the member that he/she has been found guilty of the conduct and/or the violation or violations charged, expressing appropriate concern and proposing greater sanctions if a future violation occurs. A private letter of censure shall not be read before the membership at the annual meeting of the AAPS, nor distributed to each member of the AAPS, but shall be furnished to the individual initiating the complaint about the member, provided such individual agrees in writing to maintain the confidentiality of the discipline.b) Public letter of sanction. A written letter of censure similar in form to (a) above that is read before the membership at the annual meeting of the AAPS and distributed with a summary notice to each member of the AAPS.c) Probation. The member will be allowed to attend the meetings of the AAPS and vote but may not hold office or be appointed to working committees during the period of probation. The probation shall be announced at the annual meeting of the AAPS and in a notice distributed to each member of the Society.d) Suspension. The member will be allowed to attend the meetings of the AAPS, but may not claim membership in the AAPS, vote, present and/or discuss scientific material, hold office, use the Association logo or brochures, participate in the AAPS referral service, or be appointed to working committees during the period of suspension. The suspension shall be announced at the annual meeting of the AAPS and in a notice distributed to each member of the AAPS.d) Expulsion. The member's relationship with the AAPS shall be severed and all rights and privileges of membership terminated. The expulsion shall be announced at the annual meeting of the AAPS and in a notice distributed to each member of the Association. An expelled member may reapply for membership in the AAPS no earlier than three (3) years following the effective date of the expulsion..State Medical Board Disciplinary Action NotificationThe ABPS will forward its DANS report (Disciplinary Alert Notification System) of state medical board licensure sanctions to AAPS. In this way, AAPS will also become aware of which of its members have been sanctioned by state medical boards. The DANS report can be reviewed by PRRI staff and cross referenced with the AAPS membership database. Action can be taken by the ethics committee if required.Where a member's right to practice medicine is suspended or terminated in any state, province or country by action of the applicable medical board or licensing authority, the member's membership status in the AAPS may be similarly suspended or terminated upon the effective date of the action by the licensing authorityASPS Disciplinary Action NotificationASPS will forward public sanctions to AAPS promptly after the matters are concluded by judicial council or trustees. These would consist of public letters of censure, probation, suspension and expulsion.At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Ethics Committee, and these changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review and confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual MITTEES – INVESTMENT OVERSIGHTThe Investment Oversight Committee shall consist of a Chair appointed by the President, the President-Elect, the Vice President, the immediate Past President, and one Trustee. The Treasurer shall be an ex-officio member. The Investment Oversight Committee composition, role and charge should provide the Board with an independent voice on financial matters. In addition to specific charges to the committee by the President, the Investment Oversight Committee will “audit” the Treasurer and staff handling of Association resources and annually review the Association’s investments including the investment manager’s performance. It would receive the annual audit or review (as applicable); would receive the investment manager’s reports and present an annual report at the Annual Business Meeting in which it would comment on the investment performance to benchmarks and recommend changes in investment guidelines.At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Investment Oversight Committee, and these changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review and confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual MITTEES - ISSUESIn 2013, the Board of the Association voted to transfer the duties of the Strategic Planning Committee to the duties of the Board. In its place, the Board established an Issues Committee with the charge of interim assessment of progress and development of the Association. The Issues Committee shall consist of a Chair appointed by the President and at least four additional members, one of whom shall be appointed by the Vice President for a three-year term, in addition to one Trustee. This shall ensure continuity for the committee as well as a regular rotation schedule. The Chair shall have served as a sitting member of the committee prior to appointment.In addition to specific charges to the committee by the President, the Issues Committee shall be responsible for examining changes in all aspects of practicing plastic surgery, how these changes could affect the members of the Association, and may develop recommendations on how the Association's programs, Annual Meeting, policies and procedures may need to be modified to best serve such changes in the needs of the members. The Issues Committee may also consider how to incorporate new technologies and/or educational methods into the field.The Board of the Association shall convene regular retreats at least every other year or as deemed necessary by the President upon recommendation of the Issues Committee to discuss and take action on topics of importance to the development and progress of the Association. These retreats should be held in conjunction with the Interim Meetings of the Board.At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Issues Committee. These changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review and confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual MITTEES – HONORSThe Honors Committee is a standing committee of the Association and shall be appointed annually by the Immediate Past President. It shall consist of a Chair, who is the immediate past president of the Association, and four additional members, each of whom shall serve a one-year term. No individual may chair the committee more than once.The Honors Committee may be charged with specific responsibilities by the President. In addition, it shall recommend individuals annually for two specific honors: The Honorary Award and the Distinguished Fellowship. Sitting members of the AAPS Board are not eligible to receive the Honorary or Distinguished Awards.The Honorary Award is the highest honor that the Association bestows. It is awarded annually to recognize outstanding contributions in either the humanities or sciences related to medicine and surgery and appropriate for recognition by the specialty of plastic surgery. The living recipient need not be a plastic surgeon or even a physician. The recipient will be presented to the membership by the Chair of the Honors Committee at the Opening Ceremony of the Annual Meeting, but no formal address will be given. Honorary Fellows shall be invited to future Annual Meetings of the Association.The Distinguished Fellowship may be given to one or more plastic surgeons annually. It recognizes a prestigious career in plastic surgery which is notable for significant service to theAmerican Association of Plastic Surgeons or to other national or international organizations and it recognizes leadership in the education of others in the field of plastic surgery. The living recipient(s) of the Distinguished Fellowship will be presented to the membership by the Chair of the Honors Committee at the Opening Ceremony of the Annual Meeting, but no formal address will be given. Upon notification of appointment as chair of the Honors Committee, the committee chair corresponds with the members of the committee. This correspondence should outline a deadline for receipt of nominations for Distinguished Award and Honorary Award. The committee chair will receive nominations for individuals for consideration by the Honors Committee in addition to suggestions by the membership at large which should be announced in the newsletter. When the deadline has been met, the chair of the committee may then solicit curriculum vitae data from each nominee in addition to their specific participation in the American Association of Plastic Surgeons related to meeting attendance and committee officer ship and direct presentations to the membership. If available, these CVs, along with the Association’s records of member roles and contributions will be sent to each member of the committee with a date for a conference call to be established prior to the mid-year meeting. At the conference call, discussion will be confidential and will determine recipients for the Honorary Award and for the Distinguished Award. These recipients will then be reported by the chair of the Honors Committee at the interim Board meeting for Board review and ratification.At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Honors Committee, and these changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review and confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual MITTEES – MEMBERSHIPThe Membership Committee shall consist of the Chair appointed by the President and at least three additional members, each of whom shall be appointed for a one-year term. The President-Elect and Vice President shall appoint one member of the Committee, and the President shall appoint the remaining members. A Trustee shall be a member for their three-year term. Past Chairs will participate in Committee work in a non-voting, advisory capacity as requested by the current Chair.In addition to specific charges to the Committee by the President, the Membership Committee shall have responsibility for obtaining specific information from the Director of the candidate's residency program (if feasible and appropriate) and from Fellows of the Association in the area where the candidate practices. The committee may gather additional information necessary to substantiate proof of the candidate's professional and ethical standing in his community.The completed applications for Active Membership must be submitted electronically to the Executive Office by November1 or as announced in advance and communicated to applicants and to the Membership for consideration at the Annual Meeting of the following year. The Membership Committee will review the applications for completeness and compliance with the By-Laws. The Fall Association newsletter will include the names of all individuals who have completed membership applications and are eligible for membership. The Membership Committee will also make the suitable and appropriate inquiries on a community or regional basis about the suitability of the candidates for Active Membership.At the interim Board meeting, the Membership Committee Chair will report on its progress, and present any requests for Board waivers for international applicants for membership.The Central Office will submit to each member of the Membership Committee the list of applicants ranked according to their total applicant – generated application scores, as verified by the applicants’ sponsors. The Membership committee will review each application and curriculum vitae and make any adjustments in the ranking of applicants that the Committee Members feel appropriate. The purpose of this pre—ballot Committee second screen is to prepare the voting slate for the membership in order to simplify and streamline the voting process for each Association member.A pre-balloting rating procedure shall be distributed to all members of the Association. By February 1 each year, the Board shall submit to all members the names of persons proposed for membership including the biographical data on each, degree of teaching efforts, contributions to the scientific literature, and activity and leadership in civic and medical affairs including on a community and regional basis. This profile will also include a paragraph by the sponsor(s) of the particular attributes of the candidate under consideration. The balloting summary page will list the applicants according to their total application scores as verified and reordered, where necessary, by the Membership Committee.By March 1 the members shall return to the Secretary the computed ranking of those proposed for membership. The Membership Committee will present to the Board the results of the membership rankings. The Board shall prepare a slate of proposed candidates for membership based upon information obtained from the pre-balloting ranking procedure and other pertinent information. The Secretary shall submit the ballot to the membership at the Annual Business Meeting for a vote. No questions or discussion from the floor will be permitted at the meeting. A three-fourths (3/4) affirmative vote of the members present at the Annual Business Meeting is necessary for election to membership. The Secretary shall inform each member of the Association and the newly elected members of the action taken.A candidate not elected by a vote of 3/4 of the members attending the Annual Business Meeting or whose application has been completed for three (3) years without action by the Membership Committee shall be required to wait one (1) year before a new application can be proposed. The Chair shall contact sponsors of these individuals who have not successfully had their application approved to give instruction as to reapplication.If the Membership Committee receives nomination of an individual who is not certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery or the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada, they may submit the name of this individual to the Board such that at its Interim Meeting, the Board can decide if the individual meets the criteria for special consideration for Membership as outlined in the By-Laws Article III, Section 3. If the Board votes in favor of this special consideration, the Membership Chair should then circulate the membership data for this individual as any other nominee.The Association shall take into membership annually a maximum number of candidates equal to an acceptable percentage of current practicing plastic surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. (e.g., 5,738 active board certified plastic surgeons x .05% = 29 new members) This number is a guideline and the Board has discretion to go above or below this number by majority vote of Board members present.At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Membership Committee, and these changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review and confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual MITTEES – NOMINATINGThe Nominating Committee shall consist of a Chair without vote who shall be the immediate Past President of the Association, the previous past president, and four additional members, two of whom shall be appointed by the Board at its Annual Meeting, and two of whom shall be elected by the membership from the floor at the Annual Business Meeting. Thus after the Annual Meeting, the entire Nominating Committee shall be in place.In addition to specific charges to the Committee by the President, the Nominating Committee each year shall prepare a slate of nominees for the offices of Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Historian and one or more Trustees at large. The Nominating Committee shall adhere to a selection process recognizing candidates in active practice with meritorious contributions to the field of plastic surgery; demonstrated leadership in plastic surgery; and service to the American Association of Plastic Surgeons. The President-Elect in the year preceding the Annual Meeting shall automatically assume the Presidency, and the President vacating the office at the Annual Meeting shall automatically become Trustee for a one-year term. The Vice President in the year preceding the Annual Meeting shall automatically become President-Elect.The term of office of the President, President-Elect and Vice President shall be for one (1) year, and they cannot be re-elected. The term of office for Secretary, Treasurer and Historian shall be for one (1) year but these Officers may be re-elected not to exceed a total of three years.The term of office of the Trustees elected at large shall be three (3) years with the terms staggered such that the number of Trustees at large elected at each Annual Meeting will be sufficient to provide a total of thirteen (13) members of the Board. A member who has previously served as a Trustee may be re-elected after an interval of one (1) year. Additional nominations shall be permitted from the floor at the Annual Business Meeting and voting shall be by written ballot where there are two (2) or more candidates for an office.Nominating Committee GuidelinesWhen a person accepts election or appointment to the Nominating Committee, they automatically are ineligible to hold any suggested office for which the Nominating Committee is appointing potential nominees (i.e., a member of the Nominating Committee could not be nominated for a position for which the Nominating committee is selecting candidates.) A member of the Nominating Committee could already hold office which is not under consideration for nominees by the Nominating Committee. Thus, any member of the Association who is suggested as a member of the Nominating Committee should not participate as a voting member of the Nominating Committee unless they are willing to not be in contention during the year of Nominating Committee activity for any other office.The Immediate Past President, as chair of the Nominating Committee, corresponds with the members of the committee. This correspondence should outline a deadline for receipt of nominations to fill all appropriate positions available for appointment by the Nominating Committee. The committee chair will receive nominations for individuals for consideration by the Nominating Committee in addition to nominations from the membership at large which should be announced in the newsletter and by e-mail. When the deadline has been met, the chair of the committee may then solicit curriculum vitae data from each nominee, in addition to the society’s data regarding their specific participation in and contributions to the American Association of Plastic Surgeons related to committee participation and officer-ship, presentations to the membership and endowment participation. This data will be sent to each member of the committee with a date for a conference call to be established prior to the mid-year meeting. At the conference call, discussion will be confidential and will establish a nominee for all appropriate offices available to the Nominating Committee selection. These nominees will then be reported by the chair of the Nominating Committee at the interim Board meeting for Board review and ratification. The final slate shall be presented to the Association membership for vote at the Annual Business Meeting.Candidates for officer positions in the American Association of Plastic Surgeons shall be judged by the following standards:1)Previous contributions to the Association and ongoing commitment to support the objectives of the Association shall play the most significant role, for example: Previous officer positions in the AAPSCommittee chairmanshipCommittee membershipFinancial support of AAPS2) In regard to Committee service, the more laborious positions shall receive the highest consideration, such as Chair of the Scientific Program Committees, etc.3) Ongoing contributions to the specialty, for example:Leadership in plastic surgery programs and in other local, regional or national plastic surgery-related organizationsSurgical contributionsEducational contributionsSocial and political achievementsCOMMITTEES – PROGRAMThe Program Committee shall consist of the Chair, immediate past Chair, the Chair for the following year, and as many members as the Chair feels appropriate. The Chair and one additional member shall be appointed by the President and one by the President-Elect and one by the Vice President each for a one-year term. In addition to specific charges to the Committee by the President, the Program Committee shall be responsible for the selection of the Scientific Program for the Annual Meeting of the Association. The Program Chair’s timetable should be clearly defined. This will vary with the meeting times. Following appointment, and in time for dissemination in July by staff, the Chair of the Program Committee shall prepare a Call for Abstracts to contain directions for preparation of abstracts, deadline for receipt of abstracts and such additional instructions to members and potential program participants as the Program Committee may wish. All papers submitted for presentation consideration must be accompanied by support from a sponsor who is a member of the Association unless one of the authors is a member. The senior author must be in attendance when the paper is presented.All program participants will be required to read and complete the required disclosure forms as provided by the accredited ACCME joint sponsor, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. Staff and the Program Chair will be responsible for updating the required disclosure forms on an annual basis. The program chair in cooperation with the management company will be responsible for the following items to ensure proper completion of the ASPS Continuing Medical Education Credit Guidelines:By using the data from the Needs Assessment Survey discovering educational needs or objectives that the Annual Meeting should address and then stating these objectives as being addressed by the scientific content of the Annual Meeting in printed documents.Indicate the physicians for whom the activity is designed.List any special background requirements of the prospective participants.Highlight the instructional content and/or expected learning outcome in terms of knowledge, skills, and/or attitudes.The above guidelines, once produced by the program chair, will be printed in the program book under the objectives header and in the preliminary program under the header of Purpose and Content.Requirements for submission which are to be posted on the abstract submission site include:Papers shall not be considered that have been previously presented at a national meeting. These include but are not limited to the American Association of Plastic Surgeons, American Society of Plastic Surgeons, American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, American Association for Hand Surgery, American Society for Surgery of the Hand, American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association, American Society of Reconstructive Microsurgery, American College of Surgeons (excluding the Surgical Forum), American Surgical Association, European Association of Plastic Surgeons, and American Head and Neck Society.Any question on the author's part regarding disclosure requirements or a potential violation of this policy should be reviewed with the program chair according to the ACCME guidelines as provided by the CME provider. The Program Chair shall consult with the Program Chair for the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery to help avoid conflicts of presentation. The Chair of the Program Committee shall consult with the President of the Association in planning the Scientific Program and shall allot sufficient time in the Scientific Program for presentation by the Clinician of the Year and the Kiskadden, Murray or Noone Lecturer, each selected by the President. Time during the Opening Ceremony should also be allotted for introduction of the Honorary Award, the Distinguished Fellow, the Goldwyn Award and the James Barrett Brown Award. The Committee Chair will present the recipients of the Honorary Award and Distinguished Fellowship. The ACAPS president will present the Goldwyn Award winner. No formal addresses will be given by these awardees. Time will be allotted for a presentation by the James Barrett Brown Award winner. Time will also be allotted for the AAPS President elect to present a certificate to the previous year’s Rubin Award winner.The Program Committee shall reserve a portion of the scientific program for a presentation or panel by the American Council of Academic of Plastic Surgeons.Funds for reimbursement of expenses or honoraria for all program participants, including the named lecturers or prize recipients noted above, shall be included in the budget to be approved by the Board at the Interim Meeting preceding the Annual Meeting of the Association. Any expenses or honoraria not included in the approved budget require Board approval prior to confirming the arrangements.The Program Committee Chair shall present an outline of the proposed Scientific Program at the Interim Meeting of the Board.Following selection of papers for the Scientific Program, and at least sixty (60) days in advance of the Annual Meeting, the Chair of the Program Committee shall prepare a Preliminary Program for the Annual Meeting and have it distributed to the members and invited pre-registered guests by email. The preliminary and formal programs shall contain an appropriate accreditation statement, educational objective and CME credit hours as prescribed by ACCME and the meeting CME provider. It is the responsibility of the administrative office to provide the materials one month prior to the Annual Meeting to the American Society of Plastic Surgery as the sponsoring CME body.Staff will reserve seating for new members in the front of the Opening Ceremony. The Secretary will provide a list of the deceased Fellows during the year for recognition at the Annual Business Meeting. A eulogist will be selected by the Secretary in consultation with the President and other officers of the Board. One-page eulogies will be published in the annual meeting program book and posted on the website.Annually, in conjunction with staff, the Program Committee will develop a post-meeting survey assessing the Annual Meeting and its value to the members in attendance. These data will be included in the Program Committee Chair’s report to the Interim Board meeting and forwarded to the new Program Chair. The incoming Program Chair shall be responsible for working with staff to create a member needs assessment, which shall be distributed to the membership in July. Both the post-meeting survey and the member-needs assessment survey results shall be made available to the Program Committee at the time they begin their planning.At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Program Committee, and these changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review and confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual Meeting.CONTINUING MEDICAL EDUCATION The program chair in cooperation with the management company will be responsible for the following items to ensure proper completion of the requisite Continuing Medical Education Credit Guidelines:By using the data from the Needs Assessment and Outcomes Surveys discovering educational needs or objectives that the Annual Meeting should address and then stating these objectives as being addressed by the scientific content of the Annual Meeting in printed documents.Indicate the physicians for whom the activity is designed.List any special background requirements of the prospective participants.Highlight the instructional content and/or expected learning outcome in terms of knowledge, skills, and/or attitudes.The above guidelines, once produced by the program chair, will be printed in the program book under the objectives header and in the preliminary program under the header of Purpose and Content.CME activities of the AAPS are held in conjunction with Cine-Med. Annually the Chair of the Program Committee, in response to evaluations compiled from the previous scientific program, is charged with constructing the annual program for the current year. In addition, the new Chair will report the findings of the post-meeting survey to the Board at its interim meeting.Staff and the Program Chair shall be responsible for developing, preparing, distributing and collating the post-meeting survey to assess the educational value of the Annual Meeting. The incoming Program Chair shall be responsible for working with staff to create a member needs assessment, which shall be distributed to the membership in July. Both the post-meeting survey and the member-needs assessment survey results shall be made available to the Program Committee at the time they begin their planning. This data should be collated and reported to the Program Committee for its consideration and summarized by the Chair in his/her report to the Board at its Interim MITTEES - RESEARCH AND EDUCATIONThe Research and Education Committee shall consist of a Chair, appointed by the President and at least five additional members, three of whom shall be appointed by the President for a one year term; the other two appointed by the President-Elect and Vice President. The Research and Education Committee will have the following objectives:Award grants to promote academic growth and development of selected individuals as determined by the Board. Individuals will be selected as outlined under the AAPS Academic Scholar program as described below.ACADEMIC SCHOLAR PROGRAMGoals and ObjectivesThe mission of the Association as defined in the Constitution and By-Laws is:"To stimulate and advance knowledge of the science and the art of plastic surgery."Thus, the Association has established an Academic Scholar Award to foster the career development of an academic plastic surgeon and to facilitate the provision of sheltered research time and resources in the early stages of that individual's career.GuidelinesThe American Association of Plastic Surgeons Academic Scholar Program is offering two-year faculty research scholarships to surgeons entering academic careers in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. The scholarship is to assist a surgeon in the establishment of a new and independent research program. Applicants should have demonstrated their potential to work as independent investigators. The fellowship award is $30,000 per year to provide salary and/or direct costs of the research. Funding of the award will begin July 1. The award may be renewed once.General policies covering the granting of the Academic Scholarship are:The scholarship is open to Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons who have: (1) completed the chief residency year or post-residency fellowship within the preceding five years; and (2) received a full-time faculty appointment in a department of surgery/plastic surgery at a medical school accredited by the Liaison Committee on Graduate Medical Education in the United States or by the Committee for Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools in Canada. This award is to be used by the recipient for salary support and/or direct costs of his/her research. The scholarship grant should not diminish or replace the usual, expected compensation or benefits. Indirect costs are not paid to the recipient or to the recipient's institution. No overhead is to be taken by the institution.Preference will be given to applicants who are not current recipients of major research grants. Application for this scholarship may be submitted even if comparable application to other organizations has been made. Supporting letters from 1) the Chair of the Department/Division of Plastic Surgery, 2) the Chair of the Department of Surgery, if Plastic Surgery is a Division; and 3) the Mentor of the project. This approval would involve a commitment to continuation of the academic position and of facilities for research. If any of the above individuals are on the Research and Education Committee or the Board of Directors it is required that the applicant find another comparable individual to write their letter of support.The applicant must submit a research plan and budget for the two-year period of scholarship, even though Association approval is required for the second year. A significant portion of the fellow's time will be spent in the research proposed in the application. Institutional support for this level of commitment must be evident in the supporting letters.The academic scholar is expected to attend the next two Annual Meetings of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons for possible presentation to the Board after the first year and a presentation at the scientific session of the Annual Meeting after the second year. Deadline for receipt of applications is November 1.Review ProcessThe high-profile nature of the prestigious Academic Scholar program necessitates adherence to a conflict-of-interest (COI) policy that is more specific than, and separate from, the Association’s general COI policy. This is to insure that the process for selecting the Academic Scholar award is absolutely free from any hint of bias or controversy.The COI policy for Association members involved in evaluating and recommending candidates for the Academic Scholar award is as follows: In a given year, Committee members shall not participate in the Academic Scholar selection process if: They have a familial relationship with ANY candidate.They were the residency program director, research supervisor, or official mentor, or if they played any major role in ANY candidate’s training.They have had major, previous academic collaborative ties with ANY candidate.They have current, active academic collaboration with ANY candidate.They have a business relationship with ANY candidate.They are on the faculty at the same academic institution with ANY candidate.They share call, cross-cover, or have any other relationship for clinical practice that involves ANY candidate.There are any other relationships or factors that would reasonably constitute a COI.In case of disqualification of committee members because of conflict of interests, the committee chair (who is appointed in advance of application submission and may have conflict of interests) will prepare a list of 5 to 20 nominees without apparent conflicts to serve as additional alternate judges in the Academic Scholar selection process. Former Academic Scholars may be called upon to serve in the role of alternate judges. The additional alternate judges will then be selected by the most senior officer on the Board without apparent conflicts in the following order: President, President-Elect, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Historian, Trustee of most seniority according to AAPS membership and, in case of equal membership tenure, Trustee of most seniority according to birth date. The objective of the process is to form an ultimate committee of at least 7 judges without apparent conflicts. In the case of disqualification of the chair of the Research and Education Committee, the President will appoint a chair of the Academic Scholar selection process committee.Selection ProcessSurgeons eligible for the Academic Scholar Award shall have finished either their formal plastic surgical training or post-residency fellowship training not longer than five (5) years prior to the initiation of the award on July 1 of a given calendar year. Eligibility for candidates who are applying for the award following post-residency fellowship training can be extended for a maximum of 2 years following completion of formal plastic surgical training as long as the candidate was enrolled in fellowship training during this period of time. Residents or fellows anticipating completion of their residency would be eligible to apply for the award during the final year of their residency in plastic surgery or post-residency fellowship training. If a person pursues fellowship following plastic surgery education, this does not count as a year of eligibility and they are not penalized for taking the additional year(s) of training. Thus, such an individual would have 6 to 7 years of eligibility following completion of plastic surgery residency.Eligible surgeons must request and complete an application. In addition, a supporting letter written by the Division/Department Chair of his/her plastic surgery program must accompany the application. The letter must state that it is anticipated that the resident will graduate from his/her residency in plastic surgery and is eligible to sit for the American Board of Plastic Surgery Qualifying Examination. Support letters are also required from the Chair of the Department of Surgery if Plastic Surgery is a Division, and the Mentor of the project. It is the responsibility of the scholar to have arranged appropriate institutional and mentor affiliation. This support must be confirmed by the Chairman of the Division of Plastic Surgery at the host institution prior to awarding the scholarship. The facilities and research support available at the institution must be precisely enumerated and confirmed.Criteria for judging the awardee by the Research and Education Committee will include: 1) quality of the scholarship proposal. 2) academic background and potential; 3) commitment to an academic career in plastic surgery; and 4) quality of mentor and sponsoring laboratory. Any committee member having a conflict of interest on any application must disqualify themselves from the entire scoring process. The selection process will be carried out on an annual basis. Currently, it is planned to award the scholarship every year, for a two-year period. At any given time there may be two scholars in the program.An announcement and/or advertisement will appear in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Annals of Plastic Surgery and Plastic Surgery News during the summer and/or early fall of the year preceding the July 1 initiation of the first year of the scholarship. A letter of information and announcement will be sent to each program director and fellowship director from the Research and Education Committee. In addition a request for a notice to be placed in the resource book of the Plastic Surgery Foundation will be made. A formal announcement/presentation about the Academic Scholar Award will be made at the Senior Residents meeting each year and at the American Council of Academic Plastic Surgeons.Following the Annual Meeting, an announcement of the recipients of the Academic Scholarships will be published in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Annals of Plastic Surgery and Plastic Surgery News. In addition, an announcement will be sent electronically to all AAPS members and plastic surgery program directors in the U.S. and Canada.Requests for applications from the candidates will be forwarded to the administrative office of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons. An application form, with a letter from the Chairman of the Research and Education Committee explaining the details of the scholarship, will be sent to the membership and to the Program Directors in July. The deadline for completion of the application will be November 1 of the year preceding the July 1 initiation of the scholarship. Deliberations of the committee and selection of the scholar will take place during the months of November and December. The selected scholar will be so informed in January.The individual will be requested to attend the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons. Reimbursement will not be offered by the Association for that person’s expenses. The scholar will be recognized during the Opening Session of the Annual Meeting.Financial Support - Structure and ContentThe award will be a two-year total award renewable annually at the discretion of the Board of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons. The grant from the Association is meant to support a portion of the awardee's salary and/or direct costs at an academic institution in plastic surgery. The second year of the award is to be granted upon a recommendation to the Board by the Research and Education Committee. The basis for renewal will be on evaluation of the scholar's progress and accomplishments during the first year.The scholarship will start July 1 of the year of the award. Nine months after the initiation of the scholarship program a one-page summary of activities and a confirmatory letter from the scholar's mentor must be received by the Research and Education Chairman. The Committee Chair will then inform the Board as to whether milestones have been successfully met during the first year of the scholarship. This report must be received at least six (6) weeks in advance of the Annual Meeting and must go to the President, President-Elect and Secretary.At the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons, the first year scholar will provide a written summary of activities and accomplishments to the Board. It is intended this summary would allow the Board the opportunity to entertain questions related to funding which might be inappropriate at an open scientific session. At the time of this report, a budget for the second year of the scholarship should be presented by the Academic Scholar. Based upon the background opinion of the Research and Education Committee and the current perception of the scholar's report, the second year of the scholarship will be funded by vote of the Board.For purposes of planning, it will be assumed by the Association that the scholar's work will merit a reappointment in the second year. If the Committee and/or sponsor indicate that the scholar's work is not of high quality, the scholarship will not be awarded for the second year.After conclusion of the second year of scholarship it is expected that the scholar will attend the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons at their own expense and make a formal presentation reviewing accomplishments of the two-year academic scholarship. This presentation by the scholar would be limited to ten minutes in duration and would either be included in the scientific program or presented at the Business Meeting of the Association at the discretion of the President of the AAPS. Scholarly publications of the work completed during the two years of academic scholarship are expected to be submitted for publication at this time.It is expected that the Academic Scholar will announce the receipt of the Association Academic Scholar Award in all speaking engagements and publications involving the projects completed during the two-year academic scholarship.Applicants who have competed for the Academic Scholar Award but have not been selected can direct requests for information regarding further funding sources to the Executive Director of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons. This information can be sought through the Plastic Surgery Foundation as well.In the case of combined AAPS/PSF Academic Scholar Award, the AAPS Research and Education Committee will review and score all applications as outlined in the existing guidelines for an Academic Scholar Award. The PSF shall appoint an AAPS member to the Research and Education Committee to represent the PSF in the grant review process. Should a conflict of interest arise with the PSF appointee to the committee the PSF will select an alternative AAPS member to represent the PSF on the committee. The Research and Education Committee will select the top scoring application as the AAPS Academic Scholar. The Research and Education Committee will recommend to the PSF that second best scoring grant receive the joint AAPS/PSF award. However, the rank list of the next top five scoring meritorious projects and the abstracts will be presented to the PSF for selection of the AAPS/PSF Academic Scholar. The grants for these 5 candidates will be available to the PSF on request. The awardee will be notified of their selection in January. RESEARCH ACHIEVEMENT AWARDSThe Research Achievement Awards were established in 2010 to honor one Basic Science/Translational Researcher and one Clinical Researcher. This is an annual award.The award process will begin in the Research and Education Committee (REC), where each committee member will nominate five candidates from the AAPS membership for each of the two awards. Five nominees for each category will also be solicited from the Executive Committee of the Plastic Surgery Research Council. The top nominees in each category (maximum of 25) will be notified of their nomination, will be asked to submit a two page biosketch that documents the five criteria defined below, and will be asked to confirm their willingness to serve as an AAPS Visiting Professor should they be chosen. The submitted biosketches will then be rank ordered by two subcommittees of the REC, one for each award. Ten finalists (five finalists in each category) will be submitted to the Board for review and approval, and ultimately voted on by the full AAPS membership. Each award will be presented at the Annual Meeting, with the nomination process beginning the year in advance of the award being presented.The two recipients of the Research Achievement Award will be utilized as AAPS Visiting Professors with a $5,000 stipend for each Visiting Professor each year. Criteria for consideration for the AAPS Research Achievement Year Award:AAPS membership (Active)Active clinical or basic/translational science research programEach nominee will have achieved one or more of the following features:Independent fundingRecord of peer reviewed publicationsInvited research presentationsMentoring of doctoral fellows, residents or medical studentsEvidence of peer research recognition (awards, honors, prizes)4. Candidates must be willing to serve as an AAPS Visiting Professor to be considered for this award. Any AAPS member is a candidate for nomination and consideration, but AAPS Research Achievement Award winners will be ineligible for winning the award again. Evidence of research impropriety will result in the award being retracted, and given to the first runner up as identified by the membership vote. At least thirty (30) days prior to the Annual Meeting, the Committee Chair may make suggestions for changes in the Operations Manual as it relates to the Research and Education Committee, and these changes will be submitted to the President-Elect for review before confirmation by the Board at the time of the Annual MITTEES - SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM AWARDSThe Scientific Program Awards Committee will select the BCRF/AAPS Young Clinician and Young Researcher Awards and the Best Poster Award. The BCRF/AAPS Young Clinician and Young Researcher Awards will be selected according to the agreement dated March 27, 2017. The Committee for Scientific Program Awards will also judge the poster competition at the Annual Meeting. The winners will be announced at the President’s Banquet.The members of the Committee for Scientific Program Awards will be selected according the agreement referenced above and will include the previous winner, current and previous chairs of the Scientific Program Committee and the sitting President’s designee, preferably an AAPS member noted for interest in that area of research. BCRF/AAPS Young Clinician and Young Researcher AwardsThe Body Contouring Research Foundation (BCRF) has provided a grant to the American Association of Plastic Surgeons (AAPS) to provide AAPS with the opportunity to give two awards during the AAPS Annual Meeting that will encourage young plastic surgeons (under 45) to present clinical results (to be designated “Young Clinician’s Award”) and to encourage and support more basic research in body contouring and stem cell research in a broad sense (to be designated “Young Researcher’s Award”).Young Clinician’s Award will be presented at every even year’s AAPS Annual Meeting, commencing in 2018). The award of $2,000 will be given to a presenter under the age of 45 whose clinical paper is found to be outstanding.Young Researcher’s Award will be presented at every odd year’s AAPS Annual Meeting. The award of $2,000 will be given to a presenter under the age of 45 whose research paper is found to be outstanding.The Foundation grant has at its core the hope that it can encourage and support the participation of younger plastic surgeons and thereby:Improve traditional therapies and arrive at new therapies for the improvement of body contouring surgery;Better understand the genetic and proteomics of fat distribution, obesity linkage and biomarkers;Encourage younger plastic surgeons to take an interest in this area of plastic surgery;Encourage the cross pollination of scientific ideas across cultural, linguistic and national boundaries by the dissemination of their clinical and basic research among their young peers worldwide.The selection of the recipients of these awards will be done by the Committee for Scientific Program Awards and the grant will be administered according to the agreement dated March 27, 2017. Resident Travel AwardThe American Association of Plastic Surgeons will recognize a plastic surgery resident with a $1500 scholarship to cover travel, housing, and registration to attend the AAPS Annual Meeting. EligibilityResidents in an ACGME and RCPSC approved Plastic Surgery Residency Training Program will be eligible to apply for the Scholarship by completing an application to include a personal statement, CV, and letter of support from their Program Director confirming that the person will be able to attend the entire annual meeting, and a statement that the person’s attendance at the meeting would NOT be otherwise supported (e.g. the local institution would be covering expenses for presentation/attendance). SelectionApplications will be reviewed by the Committee for Scientific Program Awards and the scholarship recipient will be selected each year based on interests in plastic surgery, productivity, and leadership. Following AcceptanceThe scholarship recipient will be notified by February 1 of each year and recognized at the annual meeting. Scholarship recipients are required to attend all of the scientific sessions. Recipients will submit appropriate receipts for transportation, lodging, and registration within 10 days after the meeting. COMMITTEES – TECHNOLOGYThe Technology Committee shall consist of a Chair, and at least 4 additional members, each of whom shall be appointed by the President for a one-year term. In addition to specific charges to the committee by the President, The Technology Committee shall be responsible for technology enhancements to the Association website and annual meeting. This committee’s function also includes responsibility for featuring emerging technologies applicable to plastic surgeons on the website and/or annual meeting (e.g., lectures, panels, videos).COMMITTEES – WOMEN IN PLASTIC SURGERYThe Women in Plastic Surgery Committee shall be made up of all women. The committee will promote the cause of women in plastic surgery through mentoring and advocacy. The committee will address gender disparities and biases and educate the general membership of the Association to help correct these. The committee shall have three members. Committee members will be appointed by the current VP, President-Elect, and President, with the Chair nominated by the President three years earlier.CONFLICTS OF INTEREST POLICIESBoard of Director OfficersIntroductionOfficers of the Association and Members of the Board ("Board Members") of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons ("AAPS") are elected to serve in a position of trust. Persons appointed as Committee Members are endowed with a position of trust within the scope of their responsibilities. In fulfilling that trust, Officers, Trustees, and Committee Members are expected to act at all times with the utmost good faith, with complete loyalty to AAPS, and to use their best care, skill and judgment, solely for the best interests of AAPS.It is the desire of AAPS to maintain high standards for the integrity of the judgments made by its Officers, Trustees, and Committee Members and, thus, to maintain public confidence in the decisions and actions of AAPS and its members. The Board has adopted guidelines set forth in this Policy to increase awareness of these issues, to establish procedures by which appropriate disclosure may be made of potential Conflicts of Interest, and to minimize the influence on Board actions of Officers', Trustees', and Committee Members' secondary interests.Types of Conflicts of InterestA Conflict of Interest may arise when an Officer, Trustee or Committee Member has family relationships, personal or business interests and affiliations, or other interests that couldinfluence the Officers', Trustees', or Committee Members' impartial judgment. Such other interests ("secondary interests") may include: self-dealing, employment relationships, business interests, consultancies or honoraria, research grants, investments, royalty interests, and other directorships. These interests may be direct interests of an Officer, Trustee or Committee Member or may be indirect interests arising from participation in these types of activities by persons with whom the Officer, Trustee or Committee Member has a significant relationship ("Related Party"). For purposes of this policy, such Related Parties may for example include the following members of an Officer's, Trustee's or Committee Member's immediate family: any child, stepchild, grandchild, spouse, sibling, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, including adoptive relationships.Situations in which an Officer's, Trustee's, or Committee Member's judgment may have the capability of resulting in a benefit or the appearance of a benefit to a Related Party or to the Officer, Trustee or Committee Member can cover a wide range. Obvious Conflicts of Interest arise, when the Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member directly and individually benefits, to the detriment-of others, from Board service, when the Board approves an award to an Officer, Trustee or Committee Member, a Related Party, or with an entity in which the Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member has a material relationship or of which the Officer, Trustee or Committee Member is an officer, director, or partner.Statement of Policy1.Each Officer, Trustee, and Committee Member shall sign a copy of this policy, attesting to the fact that they have read, understand and agree to be bound by its terms, before commencing their service to the Association. Officers and Trustees must complete new disclosure forms prior to each Board meeting.2.Where an Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member has a Conflict of Interest, the Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member shall abstain from any vote and other participation in Board activity relating to that Conflict of Interest. If the Conflict of Interest relates to a decision by the AAPS regarding an award to an individual with which an Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member has a material relationship or interest or of which the Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member is an officer, director or partner then the Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member shall disclose to the Trustees entitled to vote, the facts of the relationship and the Officer's, Trustee's or Committee Member's interest or relationship.3.Any information disclosed to the Board shall be maintained by the Secretary of the Board. Board members’ disclosure forms shall be included in the Board agenda books at each Board meeting. Such persons shall maintain the confidentiality of the informationreported by an Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member. They shall privately discuss with any Officer, Trustee, or Committee Member the Policy's provisions regardingabstention and non-participation in the decision making process.Podium Presentations at the Annual MeetingThe Association requires that all presenters disclose the full extent of their potential financial conflicts of interest.?All authors on a podium presentation will disclose any financial interests of $2,500 or above on one or more disclosure slides. The disclosure slides will be shown for a full 10 seconds. The presenter does not need to comment on the disclosures. The audience will make their own decision about potential conflicts based on the disclosure.DIRECTORYThe Program for each year's Annual Meeting shall include a roster containing the names, office or home addresses, email addresses, and names of spouses of all members of the Association. The administrative office shall maintain a current listing of all members, including the above information, for such uses as may be required by Officers, Trustees and members and for preparation of the Annual Program. It shall be the responsibility of the members to notify the administrative office of changes in information concerning them in their listing or to update their member records in the Members Only area of the Association website. A form for changes to member information will be included in the roster and will appear with dues notices.The roster of membership is available to the Fellows in the Annual Program. The roster of membership will not be provided to individuals or organizations upon request.DISCIPLINEAlleged violations of the Principles of Ethics and complaints regarding such violationsshall be referred to the Ethics Committee for its consideration.Should any Fellow make written complaints to the Secretary specifically charging another Fellow, Officer or Trustee with misconduct adversely affecting either his/her reputation as an honorable surgeon or that of the Association, the complaint shall be referred to the Association’s Ethics Committee. DISCLAIMERThe views expressed and materials presented in the course of any activity sponsored by the American Association of Plastic Surgeons, including lectures, seminars, and instructional courses or otherwise represent the personal views of the individual participants and do not represent the opinions of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons. The Association assumes no responsibility for such views or materials and hereby expressly disclaims any and all warranties, express or implied, for the content of any Association-sponsored presentations. Further, the Association hereby acknowledges that while its broad purpose is to promote the development and exchange of knowledge pertaining to the practice of plastic and reconstructive surgery, it does so only in the context of a private forum without making any representation to the public whatsoever. Accordingly, the Association declares that its primary purpose is to enhance knowledge opportunities for its physician members, and responsibility of the Association for the acts or omissions of Association members dealing with the public is hereby expressly disclaimed.A copy of the above disclaimer shall be published in the Annual Program of the Association's Annual Meeting.DUES, INITIATION FEES AND ASSESSMENTSEach Active Fellow shall pay an initiation fee at the time of admission to membership. In addition, each Active Fellow shall pay annual dues. All amounts (dues and initiation fees) so collected shall be payable in United States currency and shall be applicable to payment of the general expenses of the Association. The amount of the initiation fees and the annual dues may be raised or lowered in any year by recommendation of the Board and approval of the membership at the Annual Business Meeting. New Members dues and initiation fees must be current prior to receiving their membership certificate at the Annual Meeting following the year of their election.Distinguished Fellows and Honorary Award recipients shall not be required to pay initiation fees or dues if they are not members of the Association. If they are members they will continue to pay dues until they become Life Fellows. Although Life Fellows pay no dues, they agree that they will be receiving no compensation for plastic surgery services after becoming a Life Fellow.The Treasurer shall send to any Active Fellow whose dues shall be more than ninety (90) days in arrears a statement thereof, and in the event the payment is not made within sixty (60) days thereafter, such Fellows may, by resolution of the Board, be dropped from membership.A member who is an Active Fellow for any portion of a year must pay dues for that calendar year. An update form should be included with the annual dues notices so that the Association can maintain current membership data.Life Fellows shall be exempt from payment of dues and shall be eligible to vote, but not hold office. Distinguished Fellows and Honorary Award winners who were previously not Active members shall not be required to pay any initiation fee or dues. They may not hold office or vote at meetings. Distinguished Fellows and Honorary Award winners who were Active Fellows of the Association retain their right to pay dues and to vote at meetings.ENDORSEMENTSThe Association is opposed to the endorsement of a commercial product or service to public media by any member.Brand names may be identified by reference or by footnote in a scientific presentation at the Annual Meeting or when published in a refereed scientific publication.EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION OF PLASTIC SURGEONS ()In 1997, a relationship was established between AAPS and the European Association of Plastic Surgeons (EURAPS). This relationship was developed through the "Interspecialty Liaison Committee", a special committee chaired by the President-Elect at that time.This association between AAPS and EURAPS will include the following:1.There will be free interchange of members between AAPS and EURAPS to the reciprocal Annual Meeting without need for sponsorship. EURAPS President and Secretary General and their guest shall be invited to all AAPS social events.2.The best scientific paper from the Annual Meeting will be presented at the reciprocal meeting the following year. 3.Officer(s) of each organization will be represented at the reciprocal Annual Meeting.From AAPS, the Immediate Past President, President and President-Elect will attend the EURAPS Annual Meeting and shall receive reimbursement from AAPS for one Discount Business Class Airfare (P, Z, D, I; not regular Business, eg. C or J). A written report describing the meeting will be submitted four weeks prior to the Interim Board meeting for inclusion in the Board agenda.4.Registration fees will be complimentary for the meeting and 3 nights housing.5.A Call for Abstracts for AAPS meeting will be sent to the EURAPS Secretary General for distribution. Abstracts received from EURAPS will be blinded in the usual manner andwill receive equal evaluation by the AAPS Program Committee. 6.The recipient of the Leonard R. Rubin AAPS best paper, to be presented at the EURAPSmeeting the following year, will receive up to a $4,000 travel stipend from AAPS. He/she will also receive recognition by the President-Elect at the next Annual Meeting and will be required to report to the Annual Business Meeting of the Association the following year at thePresident's request.AAPS / EURAPS Reciprocal AgreementAAPS Annual Meeting – EURAPS President, President-Elect, Secretary General andEURAPS Best Paper award winnerAAPS provides:Complimentary registration3 Nights complimentary housingEURAPS provides:Travel expenses (economy class) + transfersEURAPS Annual Meeting – AAPS Immediate Past President, President, President-Electand Leonard R. Rubin Award winnerEURAPS provides:Complimentary registration EURAPS shall pay for hotel accommodations for AAPS officers attending EURAPS related to both attending the EURAPS meeting or as dictated by airline reservations. Any additional room supplement for an officer’s spouse or guest will be at their expense.AAPS provides:Discount Business Class Airfare (eg. P, Z, D, I; not regular Business, eg. C or J) for the immediate Past President, President and President-ElectUp to $4,000 travel stipend for the Leonard R. Rubin Award winnerHONORARIAHonoraria shall not be paid to members of the Association for any official, scientific or other activities of the Association. Expenses related to official Association business will be reimbursed within the reimbursement policy in the Operations Manual.An honorarium shall be provided for the Kiskadden, Murray and Noone Lecturers and that individual shall also be reimbursed for expenses to attend the Annual Meeting.Recipients of the Distinguished Fellowship and Honorary Award, if not Fellows, will receive an honorarium of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) and travel expenses.An honorarium and travel expenses (the amount to be proposed by the Program Committee Chairman and approved by the Board at the Interim meeting) shall be provided for invited guests who have been asked to participate in the Scientific Program of the Annual Meeting.KISKADDEN LECTUREThe Kiskadden Lecture, established in 1970 by Mrs. Margaret Adams Kiskadden in memory of her husband, William S. Kiskadden, a Past President of the Association, was originally intended to be delivered by a foreign guest of the Association. The first Kiskadden Lecturer was Thomas Gibson in 1971, and the next Lecturer was Noshir H. Antia. Subsequent Lecturers have beenAmericans and, with only two exceptions, scientists and educators (only one of the latter was a plastic surgeon).Support of the Lecture has been provided by Mrs. Kiskadden and by Walter Scott Brown (deceased, 1984), a plastic surgeon and former student of Dr. Kiskadden.Mrs. Kiskadden and other members of Dr. Kiskadden's family have made it possible to continue the Lectureship indefinitely by means of a generous gift to the Association. The family has directed that each Lecturer always shall represent the highest standards in science, education, medical research, or clinical practice.The President of the Association, in accordance with the wishes of the Kiskadden family, shall select the Kiskadden Lecturer for the Annual Meeting at which he/she presides. Notification of the choice of Lecturer, topic of the Lecture, and a copy of the Lecture program shall be sent to Mrs.?Kiskadden. The printed program for the Lecture shall consist of the title and a brief summary of the Lecturer's curriculum vitae.The Kiskadden Lecturer is to receive up to an $8,000 honorarium. Any investment income in excess of that needed to support the lecture will be directed back to the general Association fund.MURRAY LECTUREIn recognition of his pioneering efforts in the development of organ transplant surgery, Joseph E. Murray, M.D., received the 1990 Nobel Prize in Medicine from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. To honor this singular achievement by a plastic surgeon, the American Association of Plastic Surgeons established an endowed lectureship in Dr.?Murray's name. Dr. Murray delivered the first Murray Lecture on May 6, 1996, at the 75th Anniversary Meeting of the Association in Hilton Head, South Carolina.Contributions were received from the Fellows of the Association to establish The Murray Endowment. The Murray Lecturer shall receive up to an $8,000 honorarium. Any investment income in excess of that needed to support the lecture will be directed back into the Board designated Murray Fund.The Murray Lecture shall be delivered every three years. The President of the Association shall select the Murray Lecturer for the Annual Meeting at which he/she presides. The printed program for the Lecture shall consist of the title and a brief summary of .the Lecturer's curriculum vitae.NOONE LECTURER. Barrett Noone, M.D. was selected in 1997 to be the first Executive Director of the American Board of Plastic Surgery. He held this role for 18 years, supporting the specialty and representing plastic surgery with distinction and respect, while continuing in practice and on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania. He served on the Board of Directors of the American Board of Medical Specialties and was elected chair of the Member Board Executive Caucus of ABMS. To honor his extraordinary career, the present and former directors of the American Board of Plastic Surgery established and funded the R Barrett Noone Lectureship in 2015. It was natural that the fund should be placed with the Association, as Dr. Noone was elected to Association membership in 1980 and he is a Past President, Distinguished Fellow, and Honorary Award recipient of the Association. The first Noone Lecture was given by Dr. Noone himself in New York, speaking on the field of plastic surgery “From Trenches to Transplants”. Subsequent lecturers will be selected by the President of the Association for the annual meeting at which he or she presides. The lectureship will rotate with the Kiskadden and Murray lectureships. The Noone Lecturer is to receive up to an $8,000 honorarium. Any investment income in excess of that needed to support the lecture will be directed to the Scholarship Fund.LEGAL COUNSELLegal counsel for the Association shall be retained on a fee-for-service basis and such a need is determined by the Board. Annual fees (amount) shall be reported to the Board by the Treasurer.LOGOThe logo or official seal of the Association shall consist of a figure of a man with a pedicle flap from the arm to the nose, taken from Plate VIII of Gasparis Taliacotii’ De Curtorum Chirurgia per Insitionem, Bindonus, Venice, 1597. This shall be surrounded by the words, "American Association of Plastic Surgeons 1921."The logo or official seal of the Association may not be used by any members upon stationery, announcements, on websites or in private ventures.Use of the seal or logo of the Association is limited to official publications, official stationery, the official website, official announcements of functions of the Association, awards of the Association, and the conduct of its business and programsMEMBERSHIPMembership in the Association shall be by invitation only. The members shall be designated as Active, Distinguished or Life (not receiving income from clinical activity) Fellows.MEMBERSHIP - ACTIVE FELLOWSThe candidate must show recognized contributions of quality in the field of plastic surgery as a pre-requisite to membership. They will be expected to have made outstanding contributions to the field of plastic surgery in the areas of education, research, leadership or clinical excellence.Applicants are required to have attended at least one annual meeting prior to election. In addition, it is required that new members attend the annual meeting following their election to be officially introduced to the membership at the Opening Ceremony. If a new member’s dues are not paid by the time of the Annual Meeting at which they are to be introduced, they will not be introduced and will not receive their membership certificate.Each candidate for membership must be sponsored by a Fellow and endorsed by another Fellow of the Association, and either the sponsor or endorser must be from the candidate's community or (if no Fellow resides in his community) from his region. A Fellow may sponsor for membership three new candidates per calendar year. The candidate must have had five (5) years of practice in the field of plastic surgery following certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS) or certification in plastic surgery by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. An exception to Board certification may be made in instances where an outstanding person widely recognized for competence and contributions and offering national leadership in a specialized area of Plastic Surgery may not be ABPS Certified, but may still be deemed worthy of election to membership. This should include outstanding specialty surgeons with unique qualifications who have made substantial contributions, as well as distinguished foreign plastic surgeons. MEMBERSHIP - DISTINGUISHED FELLOWSDistinguished Fellows are nominated by the Honors Committee and elected by the Board. No Distinguished Fellow shall pay dues unless he/she was a previous member of the Association. Distinguished Fellows cannot vote unless they are dues paying members.LIFE FELLOWSLife Fellows (not receiving income from clinical practice) pay no dues, may not hold office, but may vote. Life Fellows will be admitted to the Annual Meeting without charge though will be required to pay for the Cannon Society Dinner. They will be required to pay for a ticket to the Presidential Banquet if they plan to attend that event.MINUTES – ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETINGThe Secretary shall keep the Minutes of the meetings of the Association. The Minutes of the most recent Annual Business Meeting shall be summarized in the fall newsletter and sent to all Fellows. MINUTES - BOARD MEETINGSThe Secretary shall keep the Minutes of the Board meetings. A draft of the Minutes prepared by staff shall be sent to the President, President-Elect and Secretary following each Board Meeting for their review and possible correction or revision. The final copy of the Minutes of the Board Meeting shall be circulated to Officers and Trustees at least thirty (30) days in advance of the next meeting of the Board.A summary of the Minutes of the Interim Meeting of the Board shall be included in the spring newsletter. Nominations of Association members provided to other organizations should not be included.NECROLOGYThe death of any Fellow of the Association should be brought to the attention of the Secretary as promptly as possible.The Secretary shall appoint a Fellow who is a friend or colleague of the deceased member to prepare a eulogy to be printed in the Annual Meeting program book and posted on the website. The eulogy will be limited to 300 words or less and will be sent to the Secretary at least three weeks before the Annual Business Meeting. A copy will be forwarded to the Countway Library.NEW MEMBERS’RECEPTIONA reception for new members of the Association (those becoming members at the previous year’s Annual Meeting) shall be held at the Annual Meeting, prior to the commencement of the Opening Ceremonies. The reception, to which Officers and Trustees of the Association shall be invited and expected to attend, shall be for the purpose of informally welcoming new members into the Association. The Secretary shall extend invitations to new members, Officers and Trustees. It is expected that all new members will have paid any necessary fees prior to their formal introduction to the Membership at the Opening Ceremonies.OFFICERS – GENERALThe government and management of the Association is entrusted to the Officers of the Association and to the Trustees collectively known as the Board.The Officers of this Association shall consist of a President, President-Elect, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Historian, all of whom shall be members of the Board. The term of office of the President and the President-Elect and Vice President shall be for one (1) year, and they cannot be re-elected. The term of the other officers shall be for one (1) year, but these Officers may be re-elected not to exceed a total of three (3) years.Nominations for the officers shall be made by a Nominating Committee, and additional nominations shall be permitted from the floor. Members present at the Annual Meeting of the Association shall elect the Officers, voting by written ballot when there are two (2) or more candidates for an office. Terms of office shall begin at the conclusion of the Annual Meeting.In case of a vacancy occurring in any of the elective offices by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the vacancy may be filled by the Board until the next Annual Meeting of the members.In case there is not a quorum at any Annual Meeting as provided in Article I, Section 4 of the By-Laws, the Officers shall continue to act until their successors have been elected.The Officers of the Association shall prepare a report in advance of each Board Meeting and shall report orally at each Board Meeting. The President-Elect will act as Parliamentarian for the Board meetings.OFFICERS – PRESIDENTThe President shall be Chair of the Board. The term of office of the President shall be for one (1) year and he/she cannot be re-elected.The President of the Association shall have the privilege of inviting, either with or without payment of guest fees, such individuals as he/she may deem important to the success of the Annual Scientific Meeting.The President may, whenever he/she deems it expedient, and shall, whenever requested to do so by two (2) members of the Board, call a Special Meeting of said Board, specifying in such call the time, place and objective of holding such meeting. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Association and of the Board. In the event of a tie vote on any question at any meeting of the members or of the Board, the President shall cast the deciding vote. Otherwise, the President has no vote. The President shall be the principal Executive Officer of the Association; shall have general charge and supervision of the affairs of the Association; shall appoint such special committees as he/she may deem necessary or proper, with such duties as he/she may designate; shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board, or as may be incident to his/her office.In case of a vacancy occurring in any of the elective offices by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the vacancy may be filled by the Board until the next Annual Meeting of the members.The President shall, with authorization by the Board, formally represent the Association in all official relationships with other professional or scientific agencies and bodies. The President may, when unable to represent the Association, ask another Officer or Trustee to represent the Association in the capacity of an official representative.The President shall oversee the preparation of two electronic Newsletters. The Newsletters should cover the following items but are not limited to:Fall Issue (October)Spring Issue (February)Committee ListingPresident’s MessageApplicants for MembershipInvitation to MeetingNew MembersSummary of Interim Board Meeting actionsRecap of the Recent MeetingPresident's MessageThe President may prepare additional Newsletters for distribution to the membership as desired.The President shall select for each Annual Meeting Scientific Program, the Clinician of the Year and the Kiskadden Lecturer, Murray Lecturer or Noone Lecturer. The President will inform the chosen participant of the expected length and nature of their address. The President will also select the individual to perform the invocation at the Banquet.The President upon assumption of office shall confirm committee appointments and shall prepare charges to each committee. The list of committees and their chairs and members shall be posted on the website and published in the Fall newsletter. They shall be appointed no later than the time of the Annual Meeting.The President may invite up to ten (10) guests to the Presidential Reception and Banquet without charge. The President may invite additional guests to the Presidential Reception and Banquet, the fee for same to be determined so as to represent as closely as possible the expense to the Association for the Presidential Reception and Banquet.OFFICERS - PRESIDENT-ELECTThe President-Elect shall be a member of the Board. The term of office of the President-Elect shall be for one (1) year, and he/she cannot be re-elected.The President-Elect shall automatically assume the duties of the President when the President completes the one (1) year term of office. The President-Elect shall act as Parliamentarian at all meetings of the Board and shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by the Board.The President-Elect shall serve on the Finance Committee.The President-Elect shall be vested with all powers and shall perform all duties of the President in the event that the President cannot perform their duties. They shall also perform any other duties deemed appropriate by the Board.In case of a vacancy occurring in any of the elective offices by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the vacancy may be filled by the Board until the next Annual Meeting of the members.The President-Elect shall make single person appointments to committees (Program, Constitution and By-Laws, Ethics, Membership, Research & Education) at the time of the Annual Meeting. At the time of the Annual Meeting, the President-Elect and Vice President will host a meeting where all new committee chairs will be introduced along with an overall discussion of new direction and anticipated committee charges for the next year. During the Annual Meeting the President-Elect will recognize the Rubin Award and the previous year winner.The President-Elect shall review the Operations Manual annually and, with the counsel of Officers, Trustees and Committee Chairs shall recommend revisions to the Board at the Annual Meeting. Board approved revisions shall be distributed in the form of a new Operations Manual to Officers and Trustees, Committee Chairs, and official representatives of the Association no later than 30 days after the Annual Meeting by the administrative office.Operations Manual changes are a Board function and changes must be consistent with the Constitution and By-Laws. The President-Elect will present essential changes of the Operations Manual to the Board. Grammatical changes do not require approval.The President-Elect shall, prior to assumption of office as President, plan committee appointments, seeking the advice of the President and outgoing Committee Chairs, in order that committee work may begin or continue without delay. (See Committees, General)OFFICERS - VICE PRESIDENTThe Vice President shall be a member of the Board. The term of the Vice President shall be for one (1) year. They will automatically ascend to the office of President-Elect when the President-Elect becomes President. The Vice President shall serve for one year on the Finance Committee.The Vice President-Elect shall be vested with all powers, and shall perform all duties of the President-Elect, in the event of the latter's inability to act, and shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board. In case of a vacancy occurring in any of the elective offices by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the vacancy may be filled by the Board until the next Annual Meeting of the members.The Vice-President shall make single person appointments to committees (Program, Constitution and By-Laws, Ethics, Issues, Membership and Research & Education) within 30 days of taking office at the end of the Annual Meeting. The Vice President shall be Chair of the Awards Committee. This committee shall select the recipient of the James Barrett Brown Award and the recipient of the Leonard R. Rubin Award for the best scientific paper presented at the Annual Meeting. The Vice President will present the James Barrett Brown Award winner at the Annual Meeting. OFFICERS – SECRETARYThe Secretary shall be a member of the Board. The term of office of the Secretary shall be for one (1) year, but he/she may be re-elected not to exceed a total of three (3) years.In case of a vacancy occurring in any of the elective offices by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the vacancy may be filled by the Board until the next Annual Meeting of the members.The Secretary shall act as Secretary of the Board.Subject to the Board, the Secretary shall have general charge and custody of the books, papers and records of the Association, shall keep the minutes of the meetings of the Board; shall have general charge of all correspondence; shall oversee all notices of meetings of the members and the Board; shall notify all members of their status as Active, Honorary Fellows or retired and shall provide an annual membership list; shall at each Annual Meeting of the members announce the names of all who cease to be members since the last Annual Meeting; shall at the direction of the Board have published and shall distribute the Constitution and By-Laws of the Association; shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board or as may be incident to his office.In each year the Secretary shall insure that: A. Minutes of the meetings of the Board are compiled.B. Minutes of the meetings of members for which he/she served as Secretary are compiled.C.A list of Association representatives with their tenure for each organization to which the Association appoints such representatives with impending vacancies in suchappointment is maintained.D. All correspondence to the Association is received and acknowledged unless it is specifically directed to other Officers or Committee Chairs.E. All requests of Fellows for sponsorship of candidates for Active Fellowship are acknowledged and provide information on the online application process.F. Applications and supporting letters are forwarded to the Membership Committee Chair twelve (12) months prior to the next Annual Meeting.G. Notification to Officers, Trustees and Committee Chairs is made sixty (60) days in advance of each Board Meeting and invite submission of agenda items. H. An agenda for each Board Meeting is prepared, in consultation with the President, and distributed to the Officers, Trustees and Committee Chairs. I. New Active Fellows and new Distinguished Fellows are notified of election of Membership. J.Follow up on any requests for resignation annually to determine the reasons for a member’s decision to resign.K. Copies of newly revised Constitution and By-Laws is prepared and distributed to all members. OFFICERS – TREASURERThe Treasurer shall be a member of the Board. Their term of office shall be for one (1) year, but he/she may be re-elected not to exceed a total of three (3) years.The Investment Oversight Committee shall be composed of the Chair appointed by the President, Vice President, President-Elect, immediate Past-President and one Trustee. The Treasurer shall be an ex-officio member of the Investment Oversight Committee. In case of a vacancy occurring in any of the elective offices by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the vacancy may be filled by the Board until the next Annual Meeting of the members.The Association's fiscal year shall be from January 1 to December 31.A Certified Public Accountant may be employed to: 1. Prepare a year-end financial report and conduct an annual audit.2. Complete the necessary reporting forms to the IRS. a. AAPS - IRS Identifying Number is 94-6118700.b. IRS Form 990 - Return of organization exempt from income tax - complete at the end of the fiscal year (December 31). Due on or before April 15.c. IRS Form 1096 - Fees paid to an individual for services rendered (secretarial help, lawyer, accountant). Need the AAPS - IRS identifying number and recipient's identifying number on this form. Send the recipient a copy of the 1096 before March 15.d. IRS Form 1099 - Miscellaneous income. Money paid to an individual as a research grant, award, or honorarium. We need the recipient's and AAPS's identifying numbers and the amount of the award. Send the recipient a copy, of the 1099 Form on or before March 15. This form is not required nor applicable if payments are made to an institution such as a medical school.3. Be aware that excess profits must be used and distributed to research, education, speakers, and other meeting expenses. When dues invoices are sent to paying members of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons, the following will be included: A listing of the types of membership, Active and Life, with a definition of each.Request for personal data update, e.g., address change, membership category change, spouse name.OFFICERS – HISTORIANThe Historian shall maintain and safeguard Archives of the Association.The Historian shall be a member of the Board. The term of the Historian shall be for one (1) year, but they may be re-elected not to exceed a total of three (3) years. In case of a vacancy occurring in any of the elective offices by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the vacancy may be filled by the Board until the next Annual Meeting of the members. The Historian shall keep a continuous account of history of the Association for the use of the membership. This shall include significant information concerning each Annual Meeting, including the site of the meeting, recipients of Honors, invited Lecturers, highlights of the Scientific Program and important actions arising from the Annual Business Meeting. The Historian shall also record significant action of the Board at its meeting. Each three (3) years, the historian shall prepare the history of the Association from the time of the last recorded history to be part of the Archives of the Association. The Historian shall make recommendations for an online history of the Association to be accessible to members via the Members Only area of the website.Memorabilia of the Association will be retained by the Historian and upon his/her recommendation to the Board and their approval, shall be offered to the Archives of Plastic Surgery at Countway Library, Harvard Medical School. Material is to be sent to the National Archives of Plastic Surgery, Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, 10 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115.Template for Annual History of AAPS1.Should be collated over the course of the year as defined as time from one Annual Meeting to the next.2.Should be written up during time frame between Annual Meeting and subsequent Interim Board Meeting.a.Should be submitted in writing and be included in the minutes of Interim Meeting as part of the Historian's Report.3.Documents to Consider and Activities to Report on in Annual History a.Annual Meeting Scientific Programi.Scientific Paper and Panel Highlights ii.Brief Synopsis of Presidential Address 1) Invited Speakersiii.Recording of Honorary Awards, Academic Fellowships, etc.iv.Recording of AAPS membership statistics v.Recording of members deceasedb.Notation of highlights of social eventsc.Photographic documentation of scientific, administrative, and social events (in addition to formal AAPS sponsored photographer)d.Copy of Presidential Address (appended)IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENTThe Immediate Past President shall be a member of the Board as a Trustee for the year immediately succeeding their presidency.The Immediate Past President shall Chair the Honors Committee. The Immediate Past President shall Chair the Nominating Committee. The Immediate Past President is a member of the Finance Committee.The Immediate Past President shall attend the EURAPS meeting following the end of their term as President and shall submit a written report four weeks prior to the Board meeting for inclusion in the Interim Board meeting agenda book. The Immediate Past President shall receive reimbursement for one Business Class Airfare (30 day advance purchase) to attend the EURAPS Annual Meeting. If EURAPS does not provide complimentary housing for the Immediate Past President, the Association will provide reimbursement for such expenses following the EURAPS Annual Meeting.PERSONAL APPEARANCESThe President of the Association shall be the official representative of the Association and may represent the Association in government or public forums or in or on the public media. The President may, when unable to represent the Association, ask another Officer to represent the Association in the capacity of an official representative.No other Officer, member of the Board, or member of the Association shall purport to be an official representative of the Association. The exception to this is the President-Elect who may represent the Association with other groups. Should Officers, members of the Board or members of the Association be asked to appear at public functions, in or on the public media, and at public or government functions, they should do so as individuals.REIMBURSEMENT POLICYBoard members that are required to attend the AAPS Interim Board meeting and Committee chairs invited by the President to make a presentation to the Board will be reimbursed for expenses incurred incident to Board business subject to the rules outlined in this policy. This includes taxi fare, use of private auto at the current U.S. government rate, parking fees, train, bus or commercial air travel, hotel charges, meals, tips, and a reasonable amount of other miscellaneous charges (not to exceed $25.00 per day) related to being away from home. Members are expected to be economical in their choice of accommodations for travel, lodging and meals. Reimbursement will be made for actual expenses incurred. Reimbursement will be for coach airfare only. Members are encouraged to book their travel at least 30 days in advance, use discount fares whenever possible, and to attempt to stay with planned travel since changes in discounted fares usually involve a considerable penalty. If it is necessary to pay a higher airfare due to a late reservation or flight changes, reimbursement will be for the discounted airfare. If one elects to make side trips to other cities, one will be required to pay the difference between the reimbursable round-trip airfare and any resulting higher airfare. Special accommodations such as charter air, charter limousines and rental cars are not authorized without prior approval.Reimbursement Vouchers for travel must include supporting receipts, e.g., airfare, hotel charges, meals, etc. and should be signed and sent to the AAPS administrative offices for reimbursement.In the case where a representative is exchanged between the AAPS and another organization, the following policy has been agreed upon: The Delegate or Alternate Delegate from the AAPS to the AMA House of Delegates will be reimbursed by the AAPS for expenses incurred to attend annual and interim meetings of the AMA House of Delegates.AAPS members who have been nominated to and serve as elected members of another Board and are serving as a fully elected member of that Board, will have all expenses paid in accordance with the policies of that Board and directly by it. Expenses for ABPS Advisory Council representatives who are not Directors of the Board will be reimbursed by AAPS for expenses incurred to attend meetings of the Advisory Council in conjunction with the Board’s semi-annual meeting in November.No reimbursement will be made to any Board or committee member for travel to the AAPS Annual Meeting or the Annual Board meeting.Questions regarding a claim for reimbursement should be directed to the AAPS administrative offices. SPECIAL MEETINGSSpecial meetings of the members may be called by the Board and shall be called whenever one-fifth of the total voting membership shall so request. Such Special Meetings shall be held at such time and place as the Board may designate.Written or electronic notice of the Annual and Interim meetings of the members shall be sent to each member at least thirty (30) days prior to the time fixed for the meeting.Special Meetings of the Board may be held at such time and place as may be designated by said Board. The President may, whenever they deem it expedient, and shall, whenever requested to do so by two (2) members of the Board, call a Special Meeting of said Board, specifying such call, the time, place and objective of holding such a meeting.Notice of the Annual and Interim meetings of the Board shall be sent to each Officer and Trustee at least thirty (30) days prior to the time fixed for the meeting. Special meetings require at least ten (10) days’ notice.SUCCESSION TO OFFICEIn case there is not a quorum at any Annual Meeting as provided in Article I, Section 4, of the By-Laws, the Officers shall continue to act until their successors have been duly elected, which may be conducted by electronic ballotIn case of any vacancy on the Board by death, resignation, disqualification or any other cause, the remaining members of the Board, by the affirmative vote of the majority thereof, may appoint a member to fill such vacancy until the next annual member business meeting. The President-Elect shall assume the office and duties of the President at the end of one (1) year when the President completes the term in office. The Vice President shall assume the office and duties of the President-Elect when the President-Elect becomes President.The President-Elect shall be vested with all powers, and shall perform all the duties of the President, in the event of the latter's inability to act, and shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board.The Vice President shall be vested with all the powers and shall perform all the duties of the President-Elect, in the latter's inability to act, and shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by the Board.VOTINGLife Fellows shall be exempt from payment of dues but shall be eligible to vote. Distinguished Fellows shall not be required to pay any initiation fee or dues. They may not hold office or vote at meetings except that those Distinguished Fellows who are ActiveFellows of the Association shall retain their right to vote at meetings.Not less than five percent (5%) of the total voting membership of the Association must be in attendance to constitute a quorum. All questions submitted to the meeting shall be determined by a majority vote of the members present (provided a quorum shall be present), except as here and otherwise provided. Upon the request of any member, the vote upon any question shall be by written or electronic ballot.Only members of the Association may attend the Annual Business Meetings, except upon rare occasion by special vote of the voting members present.Seven (7) regular members of the Board of the Association shall constitute a quorum of the Board.In case of any vacancy on the Board by death, resignation, disqualification, or any other cause, the remaining members of the Board, by the affirmative vote of the majority thereof, may appoint a member to fill such vacancy until a successor is duly elected and qualified. The Secretary shall submit nominations from the Board of the Association for Active Fellowship in the Association to the membership at the Annual Meeting for voting by written ballot. A ?affirmative vote of the members present at the Annual meeting is necessary for election to membership.Members present at the Annual Meeting of the Association shall elect the officers, voting by written ballot where there are two (2) or more candidates for an office.In the event of a tie vote on any question at any meeting of the members or Board, the President shall cast the deciding vote; otherwise, the President does not vote. ................
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