Standard Operating Procedures

Author(s): ESPNIC Secretariat
Reviewer(s): ESPNIC executive committee
Authoriser: ESPNIC Executive Committee
Date last reviewed: 9 June 2015

6.1. Congress
Every year ESPNIC organises a European Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care congress, presenting the latest developments of technology, treatment and care, and giving priority to scientific research and creative solutions of paediatric and neonatal intensive care; to a large audience of health professionals working in the field.
In even years, ESPNIC organizes a congress in conjunction with ESPR and EAP, and in odd years ESPNIC holds its own European Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care congress.

Category	Registrati on	Accommod ation (Headquart er Hotel x 3 nights)	Travel	Gala Dinner (1 ticket only)	Notes
ESPNIC Executive Committee Member	X	X	Up to €600 EU Up to €1’000 rest of world	X	If not a speaker in the programme, these costs be covered 50:50 Society & congress
ESPNIC Section Chairs OR Deputy (who are not invited speakers)	X	X	Up to €600 EU Up to €1’000 rest of world	X	If not a speaker in the programme, these costs be covered 50:50 Society & congress
Invited Speaker (invited by the congress only)	X	X	Up to €600 EU Up to €1’000 rest of world	X	Covered by congress
Invited Speaker (invited by a sponsor only)	Should be covered by     the sponsor	Should be covered by the sponsor	Should be covered by the sponsor	X	Should be covered by the sponsor
Invited Speaker (invited by the congress and a sponsor)	Should be covered by     the sponsor	Should be covered by the sponsor	Should be covered by the sponsor	X	Should be covered by the sponsor
Workshop presenter only	X	up  to  2 nights	Up to €600 EU Up to €1’000 rest of world		Covered by congress
Abstract Reviewer   & Poster Moderator	X	X	X	X
ESPNIC     Website Committee	X	X	X	X

 

6.2. Journal
Intensive Care Medicine (ICM)
➢ Is the official journal of the Society and serves as a platform for the communication and exchange of the latest developments in intensive care medicine. Its readership is directed to all experts in the field: physicians, anaesthetists, surgeons, paediatricians as well as those involved with pre-clinical subjects and medical sciences basic to these disciplines.
➢ Publisher: Springer
➢ Key contacts
o Editor-in-Chief
o Deputy Editor-in-Chief
o Paediatric Editor
➢ Impact factor: 10.125 (2015)
The Paediatric Editor should present the journal’s current status at the General Assembly to all members from 2016

6.3. Newsletter
A monthly electronic newsletter is sent out to the “good standing members” promoting the Society’s activities and providing information on the latest developments in the field. This monthly newsletter will also be the mechanism for sending out surveys.
The newsletter is prepared by the ESPNIC Office in collaboration with the EC.

6.4. Nursing Fellowship
Purpose
This Programme is to promote, foster and facilitate the exchange of knowledge and expertise between ESPNIC Nursing members in Europe. The grant will be to attend a ESPNIC or EAPS congress.
Application procedure
• Applicants complete the application form which is available to download on the website
• The applicant sends the application form to the ESPNIC office by email or post
• The ESPNIC Office compiles all applications and sends them to the Nursing President, Secretary and Chair of the Professional Development Affairs for review 5 working days after the deadline
• The Nursing President, Secretary and Chair of the Professional Development Affairs send their feedback and comments to the ESPNIC Office 10 working days after receipt of the applications. In case of no majority, the Presidents shall decide. The Committee may organise a teleconference for this purpose, but in no case there will be any expense for the Society.
• The ESPNIC Office informs successful and unsuccessful applicants via formal notification approved by the Secretary and Professional Development Affairs 5 working days after receipt of submitted results
• The ESPNIC Office follows up on the payment and the submission of report by the successful applicant(s)
Criteria for application
• The applicant must be an ESPNIC nursing member in good standing
• The applicant should meet the terms indicated in the application form (benefits of the programme for unit/institution, benefit on a professional level)
Deadline
• The deadline for application is the 1st December for the following year’s programme (i.e. 1st December 2018 for 2019 Fellowship programme)

6.5. Young Investigator Award
Author(s): Martin Kneyber, Chair of Scientific affairs
Authoriser: ESPNIC Executive Committee
Date last reviewed: 10 October 2019

About the award
Each year, the Society organises the Young Investigator Award to stimulate young researchers in the field of paediatric and neonatal critical care medicine

Eligibility
Eligible for the Young Investigator Award are those who meet the following criteria:
• Must be an ESPNIC member of good standing
• Must be aged less than 40 years
• Content of the abstract must represent original work and not presented/ or published previously
• Request for consideration must be made on the abstract form at the time of submission
• Must have an accepted abstract in the programme
• The applicant must be the first author and presenting author of the submitted abstract

Awards
There are two prizes:
• First Prize: 1200 Euro Award, complimentary registration and travel expenses covered up to 500 Euro to the next ESPNIC Annual Meeting and one-year complimentary membership
• Second Prize: 800 Euro Award, one-year complimentary membership, complimentary registration to the next ESPNIC Annual Meeting
A maximum number of 6 abstracts are selected as candidates for the Young Investigator Award.
• Each abstract that has been submitted to the annual meeting is evaluated by at least three reviewers (the chair and deputy of the section related to the abstract topic and one reviewer coming from other sections or the EC)
• All abstracts are then ranked by the median score (and in case of equal median also by the sum score)
• The 6 highest abstracts that have indicated that they want to apply for Young Investigator Award are then selected

Selected candidates will present their abstract during the annual Congress. This session is chaired by the Medical President and the Chair of Scientific Affairs. All presentations are evaluated by all section chairs and deputies and – if there is no scheduling conflict – by the members of the Executive Committee. The following items are scored on a 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent) scale: presentation style, knowledge of the subject, discussion of methodology, discussion of results, discussion of conclusions, discussion of limitations and quality of the slides.
If anyone involved in the evaluation of the candidates has a conflict of interest (i.e, participated in the research presented and/or supervised the candidate), then he/she is not allowed to vote on any of the six candidates
The Chair Scientific Affairs collects all evaluations; the score for each candidate is the sum of all individual components. The highest and second highest score are the #1 (highest) and #2 (second highest) prize winner. In case of an equal sum score, the names of these candidates are placed in a bowl and one ballot is collected by the Chair of Scientific Affairs in the presence of the Medical President. The winners are announced during the Networking event

6.6. Website
• Website address is www.espnic-online.org
• Website domain: www.espnic.org

6.7. Webcast
• Webcasting is organised during the ESPNIC congresses, upon the EC’s approval.
• The recorded sessions are made available to the members in the members’ zone section of the website.
• The ESPNIC Office in collaboration with the EC creates the promotion of the available webcasts (e-blasts, promotion at the booth during the congresses etc).
• The speakers are requested to sign an official authorisation form allowing online publishing on the ESPNIC website
• Speakers are given the opportunity to review their slides prior to the online publishing

6.8. eSurvey tool
ESPNIC offers all sections the possibility to use the eSurvey platform Survey Monkey
Scientific surveys
1. Any member for a section can design a survey on a specific topic.
2. The survey is sent to the chair and deputy chair of the section for review.
3. After any changes and if approved, the chair of the section, copying the member and deputy, sends the survey to the Chair of Scientific Affairs for review
4. If approved, the Chair of Scientific Affairs shares the survey link with the association manager. The link to the survey can be disseminated e.g. published in two consecutive, monthly ESPNIC newsletters
• Member lists are NOT distributed among individual members for the purpose of sending out surveys
• ESPNIC – related surveys are exempted from this S.O.P.

6.9. Endorsement
The ESPNIC logo is the embodiment of ESPNIC values and reputation. It is a valuable asset and a powerful tool for building and publicly acknowledging partners from the paediatric and neonatal intensive care professional community.
Under the conditions detailed below the ESPNIC Executive Committee may grant auspices, i.e. the use of the ESPNIC logo, for paediatric and neonatal intensive care activities that fall within the scope of ESPNIC’s mission and strategic objectives. Any scientific or educational formative activity, including publications or website can be endorsed if they fulfil all the criteria listed in the following subsections.

Reciprocal Agreements and Obligations
• In exchange for its endorsement, ESPNIC will have the opportunity to promote the object of its endorsement on its own website and through its own network if it so chooses.
• For conferences, meetings, courses or other educational activities subjected to a registration fee payment, ESPNIC may ask a contribution up to 5% of the registration fee for each paying participant.
• Unless there is a contractual agreement, the endorsement does not entail any financial or other obligations/liabilities on the part of ESPNIC.
• The ESPNIC Office receives and approves a copy of anything that uses the ESPNIC logo prior to its release to ensure adherence to this policy.
• Requests of endorsement may be received by Section Chairs/Deputy Chairs and must be addressed to the ESPNIC Office and the ESPNIC Secretary who will check proposal for consistency and forward to the appropriate members of the Executive Committee (see below) for a response within 10 working days.
• ESPNIC endorsement provides: 1) inclusion in the database of activities of the ESPNIC;
• 2) advertisement through ESPNIC website and members mailing list and newsletter; 3) permission to show the ESPNIC logo in the documentation, mail and web page of the activity, along with the legend “with ESPNIC endorsement” (for logo details see below “logo usage guidelines).
• The ESPNIC endorsement will allow reciprocal marketing arrangements (ie access to the mailing list/email database of the society/organisation requesting the endorsement…)
• The ESPNIC cannot be considered liable for any endorsed activity project.
Endorsement procedure
Endorsement may be asked through Sections Chairs/Deputy Chairs or directly to the ESPNIC Office or the ESPNIC Secretary.
Applicants shall:
• Fill the application form, defining the purpose of the activity and the profile of the professionals to whom it is addressed, and indicating the entities organizing the event, the members of the organizing and scientific committees and their conflicts of interest.
• Mention explicitly if the scientific endorsement of other entities has been requested/obtained.
• Indicate the application and granting of continuing education credits by an officially recognized agency or entity, mentioning its name (Ministry of Health, accrediting agencies, etc.).
• Formally accept ESPNIC purposes and obligations following endorsement.
• Guarantee that ESPNIC logo will be separate and perfectly differentiated from logos of Societies or commercial companies endorsing or anyhow supporting the event or project.
• Attach the original program of the event, or the draft of the publication or website, or the network/partnership project.

Once the Secretary has evaluated the proposal for consistency, he will be sent it, with his advice:
– The Chair of the Scientific Affairs (if it is a scientific conference, meeting or publication)
– The Chair of Professional Developmental Affairs (if it is an educational conference, course or publication)
– The Medical President (in all cases) and the Nursing Presidents (if the candidate event/publication/tool/project is related to nursing))
If the nature of the candidate event/publication/tool is not clear, it will be sent for evaluation to all the Officers listed above. A decision will be taken within 10 working days and will be communicated to the applicant by the ESPNIC Secretary. The above-listed officers may decide to use particular tools/forms for the evaluation.

General criteria
• In all cases, the activities of the company or organization seeking to reproduce the ESPNIC logo must fall within the scope of ESPNIC’s mission and strategic objectives.
• The quality of this company’s activities must correspond to ESPNIC’s own high standards of ethics and scientific integrity.
• The logo must appear ‘untampered’ (colour, slogan, size etc.) from the logo provided by the ESPNIC Office, in accordance with the guidelines described below.
• All requests will be dealt with by the ESPNIC Executive Committee, which will have the authority to officially provide ESPNIC’s agreement. The decision of ESPNIC Executive Committee cannot be appealed.
• Any changes to this policy will be recommended by an ESPNIC Executive Committee member and agreed on by the ESPNIC Executive Committee.
Criteria for conferences and Meetings
ESPNIC auspices may be granted subject to the approval of the ESPNIC Executive Committee under the following conditions:
• ESPNIC does not endorse meetings that are organized during its annual ESPNIC Congress; this includes 3 days before or after the actual meeting dates.
• The meeting does not compete with any ESPNIC activity.
• When ESPNIC endorses an event, the meeting organizers should display ESPNIC marketing collateral, which the ESPNIC Office is responsible for providing.
• It is recommended that the speakers are not from the same country and some may be members of ESPNIC
• The scientific value should be evident as reflected by the recognition of the speakers and their expertise in the field.
• No decision will be made without sufficient information on the scientific value of the event; including but not limited to topics, speakers and schedule.
• If the meeting is supported by Industry there must be multiple sponsors/exhibitors.
• Any proceedings or reports from the conference will carry the ESPNIC logo.
• Promotion: ESPNIC-endorsed conferences/meetings will be promoted on the ESPNIC website under the ‘Calendar of Events.’
• The endorsement is valid for the period specified in the application.

Criteria for publications
ESPNIC can endorse publications (books, journals, reports, guidelines, curricula, position papers, press releases, etc.) under the following conditions:
• The subject of the publication is relevant to ESPNIC’s mission and strategic objectives.
• The quality of the publication corresponds to ESPNIC’s own high standards.
• The publication does not entail any financial or other obligations/liabilities for ESPNIC unless a contractual agreement has been signed by both parties.
• The ESPNIC logo appears on the front cover.
• The ESPNIC Office receives and approves a copy of the publication prior to its release to ensure correct logo usage.
• The endorsement is always valid unless withdrawn (see below).
• Two publication endorsements are considered:

1. Sections are allowed to publish in their own name “for the ESPNIC /section name/”. This endorsement is considered for all articles prepared by the section and need to be validated by the section chair, deputy chair and Chairman of Scientific Affairs.
2. “ESPNIC endorsement “is allowed ONLY if the article is in line with the educational and/or scientific standard of ESPNIC, after evaluation by the above-mentioned EC members.
Criteria for websites and/or online tools

ESPNIC can agree to its logo’s appearance on websites other than its own under the following conditions:
• The website is relevant to ESPNIC’s mission and strategic objectives.
• The quality of the website is up to ESPNIC’s own standards.
• The logo is the official ESPNIC logo and the visual identity is adhered to (colours, size etc.) in accordance with the guidelines listed below.
• There is a ‘click through’ to the ESPNIC website.
• The decision is renewed annually unless specified otherwise by the ESPNIC Executive Committee.
• The logo does not appear alongside a pharmaceutical company or a product logo.
• The ESPNIC Office previews and approves a mock-up of the website page prior to its launch to ensure correct logo usage.

Criteria for networks and partnerships
ESPNIC can agree to its logo appearing alongside partner logos under the following conditions:
• ESPNIC is a formal network partner.
• The logo does not appear alongside the logo of a pharmaceutical company or product unless agreed on by the ESPNIC Executive Committee.
• The reputation of the networks and partners is such that it enhances ESPNIC’s own reputation.
• The ESPNIC Office receives and approves a preview of all promotional materials before their release to ensure correct logo usage.

Endorsement withdrawal
The ESPNIC may withdraw the guarantee at any time if:
· The activity causes harm to patients or ethical problems appear.
· The activity does not meet ethical or legal conditions.
· The activity does not provide the agreed information.
· The activity substantially changes its programming or content.

Logo Usage Guidelines
In all promotional materials, the ESPNIC logo must appear in its original form as provided by the ESPNIC Office according to the following criteria:
• The logo’s proportions are consistent with what was originally provided. The logo has not been stretched, cropped, rotated, or otherwise distorted from its original form. The logo does not appear in any colour other than its official colours:
• Please make sure to maintain a distinct contrast between the ESPNIC logo and the background colour on which it appears. Solid white is the preferred background colour for the ESPNIC logo. Do not place the logo on a background that does not provide sufficient contrast as it may compromise the visibility of the logo. Do not mimic the logo in the text using different fonts, colours or other text enhancing tools.

Branding Checklist
✓ Always use the correct colours.
✓ Never use an alternate typeface.
✓ Use the correct size.
✓ Use the exclusion zone.
✓ Never distort/stretch.
✓ Never rotate.
✓ Never crop.
✓ Consider the lifespan of the materials involved and if and when they will need updating.
Pantone printing coordinates

Website advertisement/promotion without endorsement
Advertisement or promotion of courses and events on the ESPNIC website are possible, after payment of a small fee (currently 100Euros). Applications are sent to the ESPNIC office and managed by the website Committee. Advertisement or promotion does not entail to any other rights typical of the endorsement. The EC decide the fee for the advertisement.

6.10 ESPNIC calendar
• The request should be submitted to the secretariat.
• The request will be reviewed by the website committee to determine if appropriate for the website.

6.11 Research Grants
Author(s): Daniele De Luca, Secretary
Authoriser: ESPNIC Executive Committee
Date last reviewed: 16 June 2019

• ESPNIC members may apply to one of the research grant programs offered by the Society with industry sponsorship. In order to apply they must be good-standing ESPNIC (medical or nursing) members and follow the appropriate instructions and forms for the grant call. Applications shall be sent to the ESPNIC Office and forwarded to the Secretary after the deadline has passed. The Secretary will screen the formal correctness of each application. Appropriate applications will then be scientifically evaluated by an ad hoc scientific committee consisting of the Medical President, the Nursing President, the Chair of the Scientific Affair and the Secretary. If one of the committee members has a conflict of interest, he/she cannot act as reviewer and should be replaced by another EC member. In case of no majority, the Presidents shall decide. The decision is final and will be communicated according to the Research grant program details. A research group awarded by a ESPNIC/industry grant may be eligible for another grant only if this is allowed by the ESPNIC/industry agreement.
• ESPNIC members can also apply for funding directly to the Society, beyond any research grant program, by sending their request to the ESPNIC Office. Applications will be formally checked by the Secretary who may ask for further documents (CV, research track, references etc..) and then scientifically evaluated by the ad hoc scientific committee, as described above. In case of no majority, the Presidents shall decide. In this case, since the funding consists of a direct ESPNIC financial involvement, the scientific evaluation must be forwarded to the Executive Committee who will take the final decision at its first meeting. The decision is final and will be communicated as early as possible. A research group awarded by a direct ESPNIC grant is not eligible to another grant for the next 5 years.
• The Committee may organise teleconference for this purpose, but in no case there will be any expense for the Society.
• For any type of research grant, the awardee will sign a form declaring ESPNIC non-liable for the research content and for any of its possible consequences. The awardee also declares to conduct research in accordance to good clinical practice, respecting relevant local regulations and only after having granted appropriate ethical approval (or waiver of). For any type of research grant ESPNIC (or the ESPNIC/Industry research grant program) must be acknowledged in any related communication or publication.

6.12. Sponsorship
ESPNIC auspices may be granted subject to the approval of the ESPNIC Executive Committee under the following conditions:
• When ESPNIC sponsors an event, the meeting organizers should display ESPNIC marketing collateral, for which the ESPNIC Office is responsible for shipment.
• The speakers must not all be from the same country and some may be members of ESPNIC.
• The scientific value should be evident as reflected by the recognition of the speakers and their expertise in the field.
• No decision will be made without sufficient information on the scientific value of the event; including but not limited to topics, speakers and schedule.
• If the meeting is supported by Industry there must be multiple sponsors/exhibitors.
• Any proceedings or reports from the conference will carry the ESPNIC logo.
• ESPNIC will be clearly mentioned as sponsor in all communications
• ESPNIC-sponsored conferences/meetings /courses will be promoted on the ESPNIC website under the ‘Calendar of Events.’
• ESPNIC is financially involved and therefore should receive a detailed report (including financial report, attendance, sponsorship etc.)after the conference/course/meeting has been held
• A contract must be signed by both parties prior to the event taking place.

6.13 Diploma
Author(s): David Rozsa, Metacred
Reviewer(s): advisory committee, Metacred
Authoriser: ESPNIC Executive Committee
Date last reviewed: 24 may 2016

1. Authority
The governing body for all of ESPNIC’s credentialing programs and activities is the EBPNIC, which has authority and is responsible for the governance of those credentialing programs and activities. To ensure the independence, integrity, objectivity, and impartiality of the operations of ESPNIC’s credentialing programs and activities, and the fair and equitable representation of the interests of all parties significantly concerned with the credentialing programs, including the general public, the EBPNIC has full autonomy over all core credentialing decisions and all important aspects of ESPNIC’s credentialing programs and activities, including, without limitation: Definition, expansion, and reduction of each credentialing program’s purpose and scope; periodic validation of standards and assessments; development and maintenance of the certification scheme for each type of credential; initial eligibility standards; recertification standards; the development, administration, and scoring of assessment instruments; granting of certification; marketing and promotion; preparatory resources; ethics and professionalism, including complaints against certificants; discipline (including suspension and withdrawal of credentials) and appeals; approval of assigned Director of Credentialing personnel; policies and procedures; and strategic oversight of operational processes, the performance of all personnel and outsourced subcontractors involved in the certification process, and the performance of examiners.

2. Composition
The EBPNIC has nine (9) members, of whom one (1) is a public member and eight (8) are practitioner members. If ESPNIC administers credentialing programs for more than one occupational role, each credentialed occupational role shall be represented by at least one (1) practitioner member of the EBPNIC.

3. Ex Officio EBPNIC Members
The EBPNIC may, from time to time, elect one or more ex officio EBPNIC members, who shall be advisory members of the EBPNIC. Any such election shall be for such term and based on such criteria as the EBPNIC from time to time deems appropriate. All ex officio EBPNIC members shall be non-voting members of the EBPNIC.

4. Qualifications
No two EBPNIC members may be affiliated with the same agency or employer. Once one hundred (100) individuals have earned an ESPNIC credential, only current ESPNIC diplomates in good standing are eligible for nomination to the eight (8) EBPNIC member positions reserved for practitioners. The public member is someone who does not satisfy ESPNIC’s credentialing programs’ eligibility requirements and is not a member of a related profession or a profession that provides services that are complementary to ESPNIC diplomates’ services, but instead represents the direct and indirect users of the services provided by ESPNIC diplomates. ESPNIC membership is not a requirement for any EBPNIC member.

5. Election and Term of Office
a. Election. Until one hundred (100) individuals earn an ESPNIC credential, all members of the EBPNIC, including the public member, shall be appointed by the ESPNIC Executive
Committee. Once one hundred (100) individuals have earned an ESPNIC credential, all subsequent members of the EBPNIC, including the public member, shall be elected by current ESPNIC diplomates and are to discharge their duties from the perspective of representing the interests of ESPNIC’s credentialing programs, rather than the interests of ESPNIC’s membership or any other special interest group. EBPNIC members shall be nominated and elected according to the policies and procedures established by the EBPNIC. Elections may be conducted by written ballot, electronically, or at the annual business meeting of ESPNIC.
b. Terms. EBPNIC members serve staggered terms of three years with approximately one-third of the EBPNIC members elected each year. No EBPNIC member may serve more than two consecutive, three-year terms.

6. Vacancies
A EBPNIC member who loses eligibility for serving on the EBPNIC will have six months to re-establish eligibility for EBPNIC service. Failure to regain such eligibility after six months will constitute an automatic resignation from the EBPNIC. A vacancy for any reason may be filled for the unexpired portion of the term of that position by a simple majority vote of remaining elected EBPNIC members. Even if unfilled, the term of office of each vacant position shall continue to run while the position is vacant.

7. Removal
Until one hundred (100) individuals earn an ESPNIC credential, all members of the EBPNIC, including the public member, may be removed by the ESPNIC Executive Committee. Once one hundred (100) individuals have earned an ESPNIC credential, all members of the EBPNIC may be removed only by a vote of ESPNIC diplomates. The same procedures used to elect EBPNIC members must be used to remove EBPNIC members.

8. Compensation
EBPNIC members do not receive compensation for their services, but may be reimbursed for expenses according to established reimbursement policies.

9. Meetings
a. Regular Meetings. The EBPNIC shall meet at least twice annually at whatever time and place it selects. Notice of each meeting will be distributed at least 48 hours prior to a meeting. The presence of a majority of EBPNIC members constitutes a quorum; a majority of votes of the members present is required to carry a matter whenever a quorum is present unless otherwise provided by these Bylaws. Proxy voting is not permitted. EBPNIC members may conduct meetings through the use of any means of communication by which all EBPNIC members participating may simultaneously hear each other during the meeting.
b. Special Meetings. A majority of the EBPNIC members may call a special meeting upon written request to the Chair of the EBPNIC.
c. Action Without Meeting. Any action to be taken at a EBPNIC meeting may be taken without a meeting if the following conditions are met.
1) A written notice stating the action to be taken and the date and time by which EBPNIC members must respond is transmitted to each member of the EBPNIC, and
2) Each member of the EBPNIC, by the time stated in the notice, either:
a) Votes in writing for such action, votes in writing against such action, or abstains in writing from voting; or
b) Fails to respond or vote and also fails to demand that action not be taken without a meeting.

10. Officers
a. Titles. The officers of the EBPNIC are Chair of the EBPNIC and Vice Chair of the EBPNIC. The Director of Certification is a staff, ex officio, non-voting officer of the EBPNIC.
b. Election and Term of Office. Officers, except for the Director of Certification, are elected from within the EBPNIC by a majority vote of all EBPNIC members as soon as possible following the initial appointment and subsequent annual election of EBPNIC members. Only the EBPNIC practitioner members may be elected as Chair of the EBPNIC or Vice Chair of the EBPNIC; the public member is not eligible for an officer position. Officers serve a one-year term or until their successors are elected. No EBPNIC member shall serve more than six consecutive terms as Chair of the EBPNIC.
c. Duties and Executive Authority. Officers perform those duties that are customary to their positions and that are assigned to them by the EBPNIC, as described in established EBPNIC policy. The Chair may act on behalf of the EBPNIC when so authorized by the EBPNIC or in emergency matters subject to subsequent review by the EBPNIC at its next meeting.
d. Vacancies. If a vacancy occurs in the Chair of the EBPNIC position, the Vice Chair of the EBPNIC will automatically assume the office of Chair for the remainder of the Chair’s officer term. If a vacancy occurs in the Vice Chair of the EBPNIC position, as soon as possible the EBPNIC will elect a new Vice Chair from within the EBPNIC, for the remainder of the Vice Chair’s officer term.
e. Removal. The EBPNIC may remove the Chair of the EBPNIC or Vice Chair of the EBPNIC at any time with or without cause by a two-thirds vote of the EBPNIC.
f. Compensation. With the exception of the staff Director of Certification, EBPNIC officers do not receive compensation for their services but may be reimbursed for expenses according to established reimbursement policies.

11. Committees
a. Executive Committee. The EBPNIC does not have an executive committee. As described herein, the Chair of the EBPNIC performs the functions of an executive committee.
b. Exam Committee. The purpose of the Exam Committee is to develop valid and reliable assessments for ESPNIC’s credentialing programs. The Chair of the EBPNIC appoints the Chair and at least two additional members of the Exam Committee, all of whom are current ESPNIC diplomates in good standing and serve for a one-year term.
c. Ethics and Professionalism Committee. The purpose of the Ethics and Professionalism Committee is to establish and enforce standards of ethics and professionalism in relation to ESPNIC’s credentialing programs that address unethical breaches of the certification process and complaints that may concern conduct that is harmful to the public or inappropriate to the discipline. The Chair of the EBPNIC appoints the Chair and at least two additional members of the Ethics and Professionalism Committee, all of whom are current ESPNIC diplomates in good standing and serve for a one-year term.
d. Appeals Committee. The purpose of the Appeals Committee is to provide a due process review of adverse decisions that affect ESPNIC credentialing program applicants, candidates, and diplomates. The Chair of the EBPNIC appoints the Chair and at least two additional members of the Appeals Committee, all of whom are current ESPNIC diplomates in good standing and serve for a one-year term.
e. Preparatory Resources Committee. The purpose of the Preparatory Resources Committee is to identify, develop, and provide resources that effectively prepare applicants for ESPNIC credentialing program assessments. The Chair of the EBPNIC appoints the Chair and at least two additional members of the Preparatory Resources Committee, all of whom are current ESPNIC diplomates in good standing and serve for a one-year term.
f. Other Committees. The EBPNIC may create or disband such other committees as needed.
g. Committee Procedures. The Chair of the EBPNIC is responsible for appointing all chairs and members of committees of the EBPNIC, unless otherwise provided in these Bylaws. The Chair of the EBPNIC shall serve as an ex-officio member of all committees of the EBPNIC. The operating procedures of all committees of the EBPNIC will be approved by the EBPNIC and be subject to annual review.