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BOA Council Who are the Council?
The full BOA Council comprises a minimum of, 18 elected trustees, and up to 12 Ex-Officio members representing key areas of interest including training and SAS. The Trustee body have the legal responsibility for the governance of the Association and is made up of the six Officers (the President, Immediate-Past President, Vice President and Vice President Elect, Honorary Secretary and Honorary Treasurer), 12 further elected trustees and for 2020/2021 an additional appointed trustee. What is the Council for? The Council has overall responsibility for leadership of the profession, setting the vision and strategic direction for the Association and being accountable to the members for its action and decisions. The BOA aims to make Trauma and Orthopaedics an inclusive surgical profession that inspires, attracts and retains the best talent from a wide variety of backgrounds. In doing so, we strive for Council to reflect this diversity and we are working hard to encourage wider engagement and involvement in the running of the Association.
What do Council members do? Council is incredibly important in the running of the BOA and, through the trustees, has responsibility for the governance, financial integrity and reputation of the Association. Meeting up to five times a year, the full Council considers matters of strategic importance to trauma and orthopaedics and delegates activities for delivery through the committee structure. While activities may be delegated to the committees, overall responsibility for decision making remains with the trustees. Last year we restructured our committees to better align our activity with our strategic priorities. Having committees that are efficient and effective with defined outcomes is key in the delivery of the BOA Mission: ‘Caring for patients, Supporting surgeons.’ All committees now have robust
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governance, a high level of accountability and a clear remit. The main committees are Education and Careers, Orthopaedic, Trauma, Research, Medico-legal, and Casting but we also deliver work through short life working groups on key or ‘hot’ topics, often requiring a faster turn round. The committees are constituted in the following ways: • Allocation of Council members either by specialty or interest area • Through open competition from the membership, including a number of dedicated roles representing key areas of importance, such as SAS and trainee representation • By position, The President, Vice President and Honorary Secretary are Ex-Officio members of committees.
are allocated areas of responsibility and are required to lead on initiatives and report back to Council on progress. Ex-Officio Council members will also contribute to discussions and report back on matters of relevance to their specific area of responsibility, this includes reflecting activity in the devolved nations. All Council members are encouraged to bring matters for consideration to the wider body and to tackle issues of importance. Council and committee meetings are usually held during the working week but the role can also involve evening and weekend commitments, and – in non COVID times – travel in the UK and occasionally internationally.
“The Council has overall responsibility for leadership of the profession, setting the vision and strategic direction for the Association and being accountable to the members for its action and decisions. The BOA aims to make Trauma and Orthopaedics an inclusive surgical profession that inspires, attracts and retains the best talent from a wide variety of backgrounds.”
Being on Council gives members a chance to use their skills and expertise to influence and input into the work of the BOA, to drive the direction of the Association and to support the development of the profession. Trustees
The work of the Council is communicated through regular updates to members via the website, newsmail and social media. We welcome suggestions for developing and improving how we communicate and any issues that you would like to hear more about.
