CONSTITUTION OF THE EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE HISTORY OF NURSING
Article 1: Title
1.1 The title of the Association shall be the European Association for the History of Nursing
Article 2: Mission Statement
2.1 The mission of the European Association for the History of Nursing is to promote the development and advancement of nursing history and related fields through scholarly inquiry, dissemination and public outreach.
Article 3: Purpose and aims
3.1 The purpose of the Association is to provide a forum for the development of the discipline of Nursing History in Europe and the advancement of nursing history globally.
3.2 The aims of the Association are to:
3.2.1 Promote scholarship in the history of nursing and related history, by providing a mutually-supportive network of individuals working in the field of Nursing History and by creating opportunities for direct collaboration on significant research projects.
3.2.2 Promote public knowledge and understanding of nursing history, by supporting initiatives for public engagement and outreach.
3.2.3 Promote the advancement of Nursing History within the disciplines of History and Nursing throughout the European region and globally, by promoting interdisciplinary collaboration with cognate research fields and disciplines, such and Medical History and Women’s History.
3.2.4 Disseminate the outcomes of historical research through: planning workshops, seminars, and conferences; supporting significant public outreach initiatives, such as museums and popular events; and through publications in the European Journal of Nursing History and Ethics, the official publication of the European Association for the History of Nursing, and other scholarly journals.
3.2.5 Facilitate mutual support and opportunities for networking and collaboration.
3.2.6 Encourage the preservation of historical documents and artifacts among its affiliates.
Article 4: Constitution, structure and governance
4.1 The Association is constituted as a non-profit entity, in which its affiliates share a common interest, expressed through a written constitution containing a mission statement and specific aims. It is self-organising and a constituent of civil society. It is organised for academic, educational, and public engagement purposes.
4.2 The Association is constituted as a federal structure, comprising member associations normally located within countries and regions of Europe. Membership of the Association is through affiliation as a constituent member; hence, a member association is referred to as an ‘affiliate’. Affiliated member associations are autonomous and self-governing. An affiliate may be represented through, inter alia, an institution, an academic centre, a scholarly society, an interest group, a museum and/or archive, an independent scholar.
4.3 The members of the Association shall appoint a governing board to represent the interests of the Association and to coordinate the activities of the Association. The board, in turn, shall be accountable to the affiliates. The board is constituted as the Board of the European Association for the History of Nursing (hereafter ‘the EAHN Board’).
4.4 The Association shall be conducted so that no individual affiliate, board officer or other individual may benefit materially from membership of the Association or from any activity conducted under the auspices of the Association.
4.5 Each affiliate is eligible to submit nominations to the EAHN Board.
4.6 While the individual affiliates of the Association are autonomous and self-governing, through affiliation with the Association, each affiliate confers delegated authority on the Association in matters related to the Association’s overall mission, aims and strategy. This delegated authority is enabled and expressed in and through the EAHN Board.
Article 5: Membership
5.1 Membership of the Association is conferred through affiliate status, as defined in Article 4.2. Affiliate status is granted on receipt of an application or an invitation to join the Association, and on approval of the EAHN Board.
5.2 The Association seeks to be inclusive in its membership; hence, an individual from any part of the world may become a member of one of the affiliates, and thereby, become a member of the Association.
5.3 Membership of the Association shall be open to national or regional associations or individuals who support the mission and aims of the Association. Membership shall be without regard to nationality, race, creed, gender, sexual orientation, age, health status, or ability.
5.4 As a federal structure, the Association may solicit a membership fee from its affiliates as a means of supporting the core aims and activities of the Association and its Board. The amount of the membership fee will be determined and agreed with reference to the needs of the Association and the capacity of individual affiliates to pay.
Article 6: Appointment of Board members and officers
6.1 The affiliates of the Association shall appoint a governing board to represents the interests of the Association and its members. The EAHN Board shall comprise five representatives drawn from its affiliates and shall elect four officer positions from among the Board members, viz., a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, and a Communications Officer.
6.2 The term of office of Board officers shall normally be two years, with the option to serve a further one to two years.
6.3 All powers of the Association are vested in and shall be exercised by the Board in the period between annual meetings of the full membership; however, in the period between meetings, the Board shall consult its members in matters of strategic importance to the Association.
Article 7: Conduct of business
7.1 The Association shall conduct its business through electronic communications and shall hold one annual meeting of the Board, either in person or virtually.
7.2 The Board shall maintain a written record of meetings held.
7.3 The Board may from time to time appoint one or more working groups to conduct tasks related to the mission and aims of the Association. Working groups will normally present a written report to the Board.
7.4 Meetings of the Association will be of two principal types: an annual meeting of the representatives of all the affiliates, designated ‘the Members’ Meeting’, and an Annual Meeting of the EAHN Board. Normally, the Annual Meeting of the Board will precede the Members’ Meeting, which shall be open.
7.5 Through an e-mail from either the Secretary or Communications Officer, the Board shall notify the members of the date and time of the Members’ Meeting. Notice shall be given a minimum of sixty days in advance of the date of the Members’ Meeting.
7.7 Members may propose items for the agenda of the Members’ Meeting and proposals for agenda items must be submitted in writing a minimum of thirty days prior to the date of the Members’ Meeting.
7.8 Matters of strategic importance to the Association, such as matters regarding the Association’s Constitution, may be placed before the Members’ Meeting and such decisions may be taken following a plebiscite of the Members present at the Members’ Meeting.
7.9 The Board may, from time to time, convene an Extraordinary Meeting of the Members.
Article 8: Communications, language and branding
8.1 Each affiliate of the Association will normally provide a written report of activities over the previous year to the Annual Meeting of the Board. The Board will, in turn, prepare an annual Bulletin, containing reports from the individual affiliates. The reports from the affiliates may be published in part or in whole in the Bulletin. The Communications Officer will normally act as Editor of the Bulletin.
8.2 The Association shall maintain a website, which will normally include information about the Association and its affiliates. The Association shall appoint a web manager.
8.3 The Association shall maintain a presence on a social media platform, through which individual affiliates may communicate information and commentary on matters of interest to the Association.
8.4 The Association shall normally conduct its business through the medium of English; however, the language used for articles in the European Journal of Nursing History and Ethics, the official publication of the European Association for the History of Nursing and Ethics, will include both the principal author(s) mother tongue and English, as appropriate.
8.5 Events, such as international conferences, held under the auspices of the Association shall incorporate the Association’s brand in all promotional materials. Use of the Association’s brand is copyright protected and may only be used by obtaining the written permission of the President or Vice-President of the Board.
Article 9: Data protection
9.1 Through all its various channels of communication, the Board shall act in compliance with current relevant European data protection regulations, in particular the General Data Protection Regulation (Directive 95/46/EC). Where a national or regional affiliated member is in a country that is not a member of the European Union or the European Economic Area, that affiliate shall act in compliance with the provisions of the territorial scope of GDRP and/or the relevant data protection regulations of that member’s country or region.
Article 10: Scholarly activities
10.1 Through the EAHN Board and through the activities of individual affiliates, the Association will engage in a range of scholarly activities in fulfillment of the Association’s mission and aims, including researching, publishing, and hosting conferences, workshops, seminars, and so forth. The Association will support networking and collaboration between the affiliates and between other scholarly associations and societies.
11.2 Individual members of the Association will support the development of the European Journal of Nursing History and Ethics through membership of the Editorial Board and/or through peer reviewing.
11.3 Through the EAHN Board, the Association will support one or more of its affiliates in hosting or co-hosting, as appropriate, a scholarly event, such as a conference or workshop. Affiliates will, in turn, support and assist in the planning and promotion of scholarly events.
THE BOARD OF THE EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE HISTORY OF NURSING
1.Title
The Board of the European Association for the History of Nursing
2. Context and purpose
In accordance with Article 6.1 of the Constitution of the Association, ‘the affiliates of the Association shall appoint a governing board to represents the interests of the Association and its members.’
3. Authority and accountability and reporting responsibility
According to Article 4.6 of the Constitution of the Association, each i affiliate confers delegated authority on the Association in matters related to the Association’s overall mission, aims and strategy. This delegated authority is enabled and expressed in and through the EAHN Board
The Board is accountable to its affiliated members (Article 4.3).
4.Membership of the Board
The Board shall comprise Five representatives drawn from its affiliates. The Board will elect five officer positions from among its members, as follows: a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, and a Communications Officer (Article 6.1). h
Each affiliate of the Association may nominate one individual to be a member to the Board. Individuals who are members of an affiliate for a minimum of two years shall be eligible to serve as a member of the EAHN Board. The term of office of Board officers shall normally be two years, with the option to serve a further one to two years.
5. Terms of reference
All powers of the Association are vested in and shall be exercised by the Board (Article 6.3). To that end, the Board shall:
Promote the best interests of the Association through effective communications with its affiliated members and with other individuals and agencies, as appropriate
Actively support the attainment of the mission and aims of the Association by planning and coordinating events and activities to be conducted under the auspices of the Association
From time to time, review the role and effectiveness of the Association, with reference to the attainment of its mission and aims
From time to time and where warranted, conduct a review of the strategic direction of the Association in consultation with the affiliated members
Develop and foster excellent relations with cognate disciplines and related fields of inquiry, in order to promote interdisciplinary collaboration and networking.
From time to time, prepare position papers on matters of concern to the Association, such as the preservation and curation of historical primary sources, national policies on the teaching of nursing history, and so forth
Plan and coordinate the Annual Members’ Meeting, in compliance with the relevant provisions of Article 8 of the Constitution.
6.Working groups
The Board may appoint one or more working groups to conduct tasks related to the mission and aims of the Association. Working groups will normally present a written report to the Board (Article 7.3).
7. Conduct of business: Frequency of meetings and record of meetings
The Board will hold a meeting of the Board at least once annually. In addition, the Board will plan and convene an annual meeting of all the Association’s affiliates. Meetings of the Board should normally precede the Annual Members’ Meeting.
The Board shall maintain a written record of meetings of the Board.
8. Quorum
A meeting of the Board shall be considered quorate when a minimum of three members are present. A meeting of the Board may not take place in the absence of either the President or the Vice-President.