1.1 President Dr.Claude Thibeault opened the meeting at 4:02 pm.
    There were 74 members signed in and present. (Appendix A)

    1.2 The President welcomed all members present, and acknowledged the number of members attending in spite of the travel
    problems experienced by our American colleagues.

    2.1. Apologies were received from Drs: Luiz A. Amezcua; Harald T. Andersen; Melchor Antunaño; Diego X. Alvarez; Frank
    Austin; Andrew H. Bellenkes; Charles A. Berry; Michael A. Berry; Charles Billings; Jay. C. Bisgard; Stephen V. Blizzard;
    Yehezkel G. Caine; Gerardo Canaveris; Donald C. Choisser; John Crowley; Jorg Draeger; Ralph Fennell; Paul Fourn; Harry
    L. Gibbons; J. Richard Hickman; Robert E. Mitchell; John Hodgson; Kenneth A. Ingham; Richard Jennings; Jon Jordan;
    William H. King; Karl Klein; David P. Millett; Sarah Nunneley; Frank S. Pettyjohn; J.P. Pollard; Frank Preston; Russell
    Rayman; Burt Rowen; G. Santucci; Len Thompson; Frederick Tilton; Paul Vandenbosch; James Vanderploeg; Lorenzo M.
    Vargas; Murillo de Oliveira Villela; Victoria Voge; Ron Wambeek; James M. Wallace; Michael Waring.

According to the Constitution, a quorum will be 20 % of members entitled to vote(including valid proxies).

As of September 1, 2001, the Academy had 175 financially current members, therefore a 20 % quorum is 35. To pass an amendment to the Constitution and By-Laws, 25% of the currently active members is required(44). There were 70 financially active full members present, plus 15 valid proxies received, resulting in a total of 85 votes. Thus, there was an ample quorum to carry out any business.

Members were asked if any one required French translation during the meeting.No requests were made, but anyone who might require translation during the meeting, may ask Dr. Thibeault.

6. BUSINESS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES

There was no business arising from the Minutes.

    7.1. Request for Retired Status for 2002:

1. Dr. Harald Andersen, Norway elected 1990
2. Dr. Stanley Diamond, USA elected 1984
3. Dr. Dr. Stanley Knapp, USA elected 1988
4. Dr. Jean-Pierre Metges, France elected 1980

1. Dr.Dougal Watson, Australia, Associate Member, elected 1998

    7.3 Recommendation for Inactive Status

1. Dr. A. Sandy Dawson, New Zealand, elected 1993, has not paid dues since 1997, has not responded to repeated personal letters. As Dr. Dawson was the previous Secretary-General, and has contributed significantly to the Academy, Dr. Donaldson had agreed to try and contact Dr. Dawson, before placing his name on Inactive Status. Dr. Donaldson was not successful in contacting Dr. Dawson. Therefore Dr. Dawson will be placed on Inactive Status.

The above changes were approved by the Executive Council.

            The Secretary General did not receive any notification of any deceased members, and no names were offered from
            the members present.

8. ITEMS COMING FROM THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

South Africa has been approved to host the 52^nd International Congress of Aviation and Space Medicine in Sun City, South Africa, in 2004.

The President stated that the wording for the proposed By-Law changes will be circulated to all Members at least 60 days before the next General Assembly for a vote. He explained that this issue had been discussed at the previous General Assembly by the Chancellor. The "special pathway" to membership is to allow an eminently qualified colleague who may have distinguished themselves in the aerospace medicine field later in their careers, and thus may not be able to meet the ten years of experience requirement. The President emphasized that this is a "special" pathway to a "normal" membership .(Appendix 2)

Dr. Eric Donaldson explained that Griffith University, of Australia, has been involved in providing educational opportunities to students in remote locations through distance learning.

The School of Aviation at Griffith University has already set a precedent in the aviation field with a joint Aviation Degree with BAE Systems at the undergraduate level. Dr. Donaldson, having discussed this with President Thibeault, was encouraged to pursue the concept in aerospace medicine for physicians in distant lands who may not be able to attend face-to-face classes at a recognized learning institution. Dr. Thibeault explained that McGill University in Canada has already implemented such a program with great success.

Dr. Donaldson further explained that Academicians who are experts in a particular field could act as lecturers, and Griffith University would pay the Academy. The Academy in turn would have a source of income to provide Scholarships. The University has offered to provide the facilities to deliver the course via the Internet. The Academy would then be setting the teaching standards in cooperation with the University. The program would not be competing with the already existing

aerospace medicine courses, but would be providing a more elementary knowledge in the field, thereby allowing those who are able, to later pursue the more advanced training in aerospace medicine at the already established postgraduate aeromedical residency programs in Europe and North America.

Dr. Donaldson has been assured support by Griffith University for the establishment of such a program in cooperation with the Academy. Therefore, the Executive

Council has endorsed the concept, and the project has been referred to the Scientific Committee for further development.

Dr. Antonio Castelo-Branco referred to page 5 of the Minutes of the 84^th General Assembly which took place in Reno, and expressed his objection at the concept of a Scientific Panel to be named in honor of Dr. John Ernsting, "similar to the Allard Lecture. Dr. Castelo-Branco stated that Dr. André Allard died in 1978, and many years after his death, the concept of the Allard Lecture was established. He continued to state that he has no problem with the eminent internationally recognized qualifications of Dr. Ernsting. However, he was opposed to the naming of a scientific Panel, without considering other eminently qualified deceased Academicians.

President Thibeault explained that the reason for the naming of a Scientific Panel in honour of Dr. John Ernsting was because it was Dr. Ernsting’s efforts as the first Chair of the Scientific Committee that the Academy is now enjoying an improved standard in the Congress Scientific Program. The concept was discussed and approved unanimously by the Scientific Committee at their meeting in Rio de Janeiro, and referred to the Executive Council meeting in Rio de Janeiro. The concept was unanimously endorsed by the Executive Council at their meeting in Rio de Janeiro, and therefore the issue was put forward to the General Assembly in Reno de Janeiro. President Thibeault further explained that when it was put to the General Assembly in Reno, May 8, 2001, there was no further comment except for a unanimous round of applause. He also offered to have the wording of the minutes referring to the Allard Lecture changed if Dr. Castelo-Branco was offended as the intention was not to make any direct comparison to the Allard Lecture but was only intended to honour Dr. John Ernsting for his continued efforts in improving the level of the Scientific Program at future Congresses.

There was some discussion that perhaps the name of the Panel could be rotated through various names honouring deceased Academicians.

It was moved by Dr. D. Lestage, seconded by Dr. G. Cameron, that the matter be referred back to the Executive Council for further discussion, and report back to the Members at the next General Assembly.
The motion was passed unanimously.

Dr. Frank Pettyjohn, the Chancellor, was unable to leave the US by air due to the Sept. 11/01 crisis, and thus appointed Dr. A. Martin Saint-Laurent to chair the Selectors Committee on Sunday, Sept. 16, 2001, at 11:00 am. 10 Selectors had attended the Selectors meeting. Also in attendance were non-voting members: President C. Thibeault, 1^st V-P Ulf Balldin, Past-President R. Auffret.

    The Committee had considered six Applications, with the following results:

Full Members:
1. Dr.William Kruyer, USA
2. Dr. Fred Arthur Wells, USA
3. Dr. Jarnail Singh, Singapore
4. Dr. Harish Malik, India
5. Dr. Miles Snowden, USA
6. Dr. Roger Stork, Ph.D. USA

Dr. Saint-Laurent reported that all candidates received the full 20 votes from the full committee.

    The President thanked Dr. Saint-Laurent for the report.

Moved by Dr. M. Bagshaw, seconded by Dr. Ian Perry, that the report of the Selectors Committee be accepted and approved. Carried unanimously.

Dr. Donaldson chaired the meeting which took place on Sunday Sept. 16, at 10:00 am, and presented the Scholarship Committee Report. He reported that 7 members of the Committee attended the meeting. Apologies were received from Drs. Stan Mohler, James Wallace, Sharon Falkenheimer and Michael Mork.

The meeting was also attended by President Claude Thibeault, and 1^st Vice-President Ulf Balldin.

Dr. Donaldson reported that 30 applications were received and reviewed by the Committee. He explained that it was very fortunate that the Committee had agreed to process all applications electronically via e-mail as electronic communications made the selection process much more efficient.

    10.2-Scholarship Winner:

Dr. Donaldson reported that there was a clear winner, Dr. Mehdi Sattarian, from Iran. Dr. Sattarian wishes to pursue his Aerospace Medicine studies at Wright State University, in Dayton, Ohio. After completing his training in Aerospace Medicine, his goal is to develop and establish training programs in Aerospace Medicine in Iran.

    10.3- List of International Aerospace Medicine Training Programs

The Committee felt that it would be useful to have a list of prospective aerospace medicine training programs that were available to international students. The Committee will be asking Dr. Sharon Falkenheimer to compile such a list.

The Committee will continue to establish and maintain communication with past Scholarship Winners, as it would not only be of interest to the Academy, but it would be beneficial for their careers to maintain contact with the Academy.

Moved by Dr.Dan Lestage, seconded by Dr. A. Castelo-Branco, that the Scholarship Committee Report be accepted, and approved.

Carried unanimously.

    11.1 Dr. John Ernsting, who was appointed as Acting Chair by Dr. Geoff Caine, presented the Committee’s report. The
                 Committee met on Sunday, September 16^th, at 9:00 am.

    11.2 He received apologies from Dr.C. Billings, Dr. G. Gray, Dr. J.R. Hickman, Dr. F. Pettyjohn and Dr. G. Takahashi.

The following members of the Scientific Committee were present:. Drs. Michael Bagshaw, Jean-Pierre Crance, Roy DeHart, Francisco Rios-Tejada, and Acting Chair John Ernsting. The meeting was also attended by President C. Thibeault, First Vice-President Ulf Balldin, and Past-President Silvio Finkelstein.

    11.3 Publications:

11.3.1- Monograph by Dr. Anthony Nicholson:
Dr. Caine received an update from Dr. Thompson, regarding the total number sold.
A further 2 had been sold by June 2001. Dr. Takahashi stated that he had sold an additional 15 copies, mainly to new members.

11.3.2- Dr. Jon Jordan’s Oslo Paper:
Dr. Jordan had confirmed that he would complete his paper for publication in the Newsletter in the near future.

11.3.3- Dr. John Ernsting’s Monograph on Hypoxia:
Dr. Ernsting apologized for the delay in the completion of his Monograph. He had reported that the initial draft was three quarters finished, and he hoped that it would be ready for the Montreal meeting in May 2002.

    11.4 Instructions for Organizers of an International Congress:

11.4.1 It was reported that the "Instructions to Organizers" as reviewed in July, 2001 were sound, and that the Secretary-General send a copy of the most recent "Instructions" to the organizers of the Congresses scheduled for Australia, Spain, South Africa, and any other Organizers who have expressed interest in holding a Congress.

11.4.2 It was also recommended by the Committee, and subsequently approved by the Executive Council, that the Chairman of the local Scientific Coordinating Committee be made a member of the Scientific Committee at least two years prior to the year of the Congress. This person should preferably be a member of the Academy.

 

11.5.1 -The first trial of the procedure of the Academy’s Scientific Committee reviewing and making recommendations on the Abstracts as they were received by the local Scientific Coordinating Committee went quite successfully with the excellent collaboration of Dr. Jean-Pierre Crance. The final outcome was reported as very satisfactory, and the procedure of transmitting electronically the Abstracts and Comments between the two committees went very smoothly and efficiently.

11.5.2 - The Committee concluded that the formats of the Abstracts and the Program were excellent, and therefore both should be used as templates for future Congresses.

 

    11.6 Future Directions for the Scientific Committee:

11.6.1 Position Paper on DVT:
The Scientific Committee approved that the Academy should grasp the concept of current issues in the field and write position papers. As a result of the excellent presentation and discussions in the Panel on the subject of Deep Vein Thrombosis Associated with Travel, the Committee felt that the Academy should produce a position paper on the subject.

However, apparently the Air Transport Committee of the Aerospace Medical Association had already published its report on the subject in the "Blue Journal" of AsMA in the September, 2001 issue. Therefore the Committee felt that rather than duplicate the efforts of AsMA, it would be more appropriate if the Committee members reviewed the Report, and determine if the Academy should endorse the Report.

            11.6.2 Future Procedures:

Regarding future position papers, it was recommended that the Academy coordinate with the Aerospace Medical Association to avoid duplication on the same subject, and agree to endorse each other’s position papers.

Dr. Claude Thibeault has agreed to discuss this issue before and during the next AsMA Council meeting scheduled for November, 2001.

The Committee recommended that the "John Ernsting Panel" at the Sydney Congress in September, 2002 be devoted to the issue of "Cosmic Radiation", and the Academy write a position paper on the topic. This has been approved by the Executive Council.

The Committee also recommended to the Nominating Committee that there be two French speaking members on the Scientific Committee to assist in the reviewing of Abstracts submitted in French.

Moved by Dr. Roy DeHart, seconded by Dr.Robert Auffret, that the Report of the Scientific Committee be approved and accepted. Carried unanimously.

The main points in the Secretary-General’s report were as follows:

    13.1.1. Address Changes:

Members were strongly urged to notify the Secretary-General of changes in address as soon as possible, as contact is lost until a new address is received. Many mailings are returned after each mailing because of a change in address. This results in increased costs for postage, as mailings often are required to be re-mailed after receipt of a new address.

Members were again reminded to pay their Annual Membership Dues as soon as the Statement of Account is received at the beginning of the year, as the annual membership expires on January 31 of each year. The requirement to send a second statement reminder adds to the administrative costs of running the Academy, and therefore, the Secretary-General again pleaded to the members to pay their Annual Dues as soon as the Statement of Account is received. Members were reminded that as result of the recent By-Law changes, if members do not respond within thirty days of receipt of the second

Annual Dues notice, they will be placed on Inactive Status.

.

    13.3. New Academy Ties:

New wider fashionably-correct Academy ties have been made available. In addition, due to requests from members, bow-ties also have been available. Because the Academy officially has two languages, the letters AIMAS have been added to the logo on the ties.

It was reported that the new ties have been very well received.
        Prices: Silk $US 40.00
        Polyester 25.00
        Bow-tie 25.00

    13.4.FINANCIAL SUMMARY for 2000(Canada):

This information is only available in the original Minutes mailed to members.

Sept. 1, 2001 Sept. 1, 2000

Full Members                   179,164
Associate Members                 65
Corporate Members                  31
Retired Members                  6,863
Total Members               256,233

% Paid-up Members 92.5 % 84%
(Inactive "members" not included)

Moved by Dr. Ian Perry, seconded by Dr. Graeme Cameron, that the Secretary-General’s report be approved and accepted.

Carried unanimously.

The Chancellor and the Selectors Committee had been working on a special process to allow certain individuals in the field of aerospace medicine who have distinguished themselves later in their careers and thus may have problems meeting the ten year experience criteria.

Proposed wording to be considered for an amendment to the By-Laws is being reviewed by the Executive Council, and will be distributed by the Secretary-General at least thirty days before the next General Assembly for a vote. (Appendix 1)

 

    15.1 Congress 2001, Geneva, Switzerland

Dr. Hans Hafner, Co-President of the Organizing Committee, made a presentation on behalf of the 49^th ICASM, which is being co-hosted by the Société Suisse de Médecine Aéronautique (S.S.M.A.) and the Société Française de Médecine Aéronautique et Spatiale (SOFRAMAS).

Dr. Hafner reported that 629 had registered for the Congress. Amongst the registrants, there were 66 countries represented. 544 were participants, along with 82 accompanying persons.

Dr. Hafner reported that several papers were cancelled due to our American colleagues who have had to cancel travel due to the tragedy of September 11, 2001. He stated that in lieu of cancelled papers substitute activities have been added to the Scientific Program.

The Social Program and other events are taking place as planned.

The President thanked Dr. Hafner for his presentation and the excellent arrangements thus far.

President Thibeault announced that the new members will be presented with their Academy Medals and Membership Certificates that evening at the Academy Dinner:

It was pointed out that Dr. Maurice Strumza, age 96 years old, a Member of the Academy since 1961 was attending the Congress. Dr. Strumza was present, and was therefore recognized by the General Assembly for his many years as an Academician.

    17.2. Dr. Claude Thibeault:

Dr. Claude Thibeault indicated that this would be the last time that he would be presiding over the General Assembly as President, and therefore he wished to thank everyone for the opportunity to face and address several challenges over the past two years. He also thanked all the Committee Chairs, the Committee members, the Secretary-General, and all Academicians for their support and cooperation during his term as President.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 5:48 pm.

Moved by Dr. Roy DeHart, seconded by Dr. Dan Lestage that the meeting be adjourned.

Recording Secretary:

George Y. Takahashi, M.D.

1. The Academy will accept applications for membership from those individuals entering the field of Aviation and Space Medicine late in their professional careers and having made a distinguished contribution to aviation and/or space medicine and/or associated allied science, or have reached positions of preeminence in the field. The Academy recognizes the need for a separate and distinct procedure for selection of such individuals for membership.

1. To be considered eligible for membership, the applicant must meet the provisions of paragraph B,2, Member, with the exception of Article 1, paragraph B,2,f.

1. Election to membership shall be by the following procedure:

a. Application for membership shall be submitted to the Secretary General.

2. Secretary General shall forward the application to the Chancellor to provide to the Selectors in a timely manner.

c. The Committee of Selectors shall indicate by concurrence or non-concurrence of their support for forwarding the application to the Executive Council.

d. Concurrence of the Selectors is required to be unanimous (100%) to forward the application to the Executive Council. It is specified that a non-response by a Selector sixty (60) days after mailing will constitute a concurrence.

e. The Executive Council shall consider the application and provide determination for acceptance/denial. The Executive Council must vote unanimously (100%) for selection for Membership.

f. The decision of the Executive Council shall be final. The President will notify the applicant of his/her selection or non-selection for Membership.

g. The applicants selected for Membership through this special process shall be a full member, entitled to all rights and privileges accorded thereto.