Canadian Cardiovascular Society
 
Canadian Cardiovascular Society

Committees

Governance Committee

Chair: Andrew Krahn, CCS Past President

The Governance Committee of the CCS is a standing committee of the Council of the CCS. It was established to assist the Council in carrying on the business of the Society in connection with all matters relating to governance. For the purposes of this duty, governance is defined as providing oversight on the CCS so as to be assured that the Society fulfills its commitments and obligations.

Two-year term (with the possibility of a two-year extension)

Responsibilities:

  • To assure Council that a measurable process of governance has been defined, documented, and operationalized in the Society.
  • To gain assurance from Management that the aforementioned governance process is embodied in the Society’s internal controls.
  • To make recommendations to Council on the improvement in governance practices and processes for the Society.
  • To act as the nominations committee for all vacant positions on Council or Committees of Council.
  • To make recommendations to Council for vacant positions of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and Committee Chairpersons.
  • The prepare criteria for the recruitment, screening and selection of candidates for vacant positions on Council and Committees.
  • To oversee the Board orientation process.
  • To recommend to Council the amendment of the Society’s by-laws, as and when, necessary.
  • To recommend to Council the recipients of the CCS Recognition Awards: Achievement Award; Distinguished Teacher/Mentor Award; Women in Cardiovascular Medicine-Science Mentorship Award; Dr. Harold N. Segall Award of Merit; Trainee Excellence in Education Award; Research Achievement Award; and, the Dr. Robert E. Beamish Award.
  • To oversee and approve changes to the Society’s Delegation of Authorities.
  • To undertake other governance duties as requested by Council.

Membership
The Governance Committee will be chaired by the CCS Past President, and includes five (5) other CCS members appointed by Council including the CCS Secretary, a Trainee and an Early Career member. The Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial and Governance Officer of the Society will be non-voting members of the Committee.

Frequency of Meetings
The committee will meet at least twice per year (June and October; in person, as feasible) and more frequently as required (virtually).

Audit and Risk Management Committee

Chair: Sean Virani

The Audit and Risk Management (ARM) Committee is a standing Committee of the Council of the CCS. It was established to assist the Council with the fulfillment of its fiduciary responsibilities for financial oversight and accountability.

Membership
The ARM shall be comprised of five (5) members appointed by Council, at least one (1) of whom is a Council member, one of whom is past CCS Treasurer, one (1) who is a trainee and one (1) who is an Early Career Member. The CEO and CFGO of the CCS shall be non-voting members of the ARM. The CCS Treasurer shall be Chairperson of the ARM. The CFGO serves as the subject matter expert for the ARM.

Terms of Appointment
Each ARM member serves for a period of two (2) years and may be re-appointed for a second term upon completion of their first term.

Frequency of Meetings
The ARM shall meet in person at least twice per year (June and October) and by teleconference in January. Any member of the ARM may request a special meeting at any time.

For more information about these positions, please contact Clary Ottman, Chief Financial and Governance Officer at ottman@ccs.ca.

Research Fellowship and Awards Committee

Chair: Satish Raj

The CCS Research Fellowship and Awards Committee is advisory in scope, providing expert, informed advice and recommendations to the CCS Executive and Council on:

  • Policies, practices, scope and structure of CCS research fellowships and research awards.
  • Risks and opportunities related to CCS research funding initiatives, including emerging trends and changes in the Canadian research funding environment

Two-year term (once renewable)

Committee Member
CCS Research Fellowship and Awards Committee members are subject matter experts (the Chair is an active clinician-scientist), including past awardees of a CCS Research Fellowship or Research Award. Members have knowledge of the CCS, the Canadian research funding and award environment and the needs of clinician-scientists at all career stages, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and Peer Review best practices.

For more information about these positions, please contact Shauna Almas, CCS Director of Development at almas@ccs.ca.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Committee

Chair: Sonia Anand

The vision of the CCS is strong heart teams in a heart healthy Canada. Fostering equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) is one of our guiding principles. The success of the CCS Mission depends on people who provide a diversity of background, experience, ideas and perspectives as members and leaders. The Equity, Diversity, Inclusion (EDI) Committee supports the CCS in establishing the strategic priorities and action plans to uphold and advance our EDI values.

One-to-two year terms

The EDI Committee is a standing committee of the CCS and reports to Council. The EDI Committee is responsible for:

  • Supporting CCS in evaluating needs, offerings, processes, practices, and policies to assess strengths and shortcomings to facilitate improvements in what we do and how we do it;
  • Using existing CCS membership and other data to inform current status on EDI within the Society, and advising CCS on improving data collection and analytics to support EDI activities and evaluation;
  • Advising on CCS’s long term EDI strategy by supporting staff in identifying key priorities and activities to advance this work, informed by CCS baseline data;
  • Championing the policies, processes, and positions the CCS adopts; and,
  • Evaluating progress using an established list of key performance indicators.

For more information about these positions, please contact Kendra Pelland, Program Manager, Policy and Advocacy at pelland@ccs.ca.

Continuing Professional Development Committee

Chair: Chi-Ming Chow, St. Michael’s Hospital

The CPD Committee promotes excellence in cardiovascular care by positioning the CCS as the national leader in cardiovascular knowledge translation. Members of the CPD Committee must be committed to ensuring the CCS’ continuing professional development program meets the educational needs of clinicians delivering cardiovascular care in Canada. Representatives for this committee are selected from across Canada and from various areas of care.

Three-year term (with the possibility of a two-year extension)

Committee Member
The Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Committee provides the CCS Executive and Council with informed recommendations regarding CCS CPD programs for members and trainees, in consideration of best practices in Knowledge Translation and The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) Accreditation criteria. This is a two to four-year term.

For more information about these positions, please contact Vanessa Richardson, Program Manager, Continuing Professional Development at cpd@ccs.ca.

Guidelines Committee

Chair: Kim Connelly, St. Michael’s Hospital

The CCS Guidelines Committee is seeking two additional members for a two-year term beginning November 1, 2022. The Guidelines Committee is a strong and experienced standing committee of CCS members. It is accountable for steering, supporting and approving the slate of Guidelines and Clinical Practice Updates (CPU) through to successful publication in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology (CJC), and directly supporting the CCS’ vision, mission and strategic operating plan.

Committee members will be expected to commit time to functions that include, but are not limited to, participating in review and selection of the annual call for topics, peer review of final draft manuscripts and voting on eligibility for submission to the CJC, actively participate as a Guidelines Committee liaison on one or two Guideline / CPU panels, collaborate with other CCS standing committees (ie, SPC, CPD) and attend a minimum of four virtual committee calls, plus one Congress meeting (either in person or virtual) each year.

Guidelines Committee members are CCS members in good standing. They will embrace CCS’s Committee Member Core Competencies and the Committee will be balanced for equity, diversity and inclusion.

Guidelines Committee members bring an excellent cross-section of qualifications and interests that include:

  • Cardiovascular specialists and sub-specialists (pediatrics, surgery/transplant, interventional cardiology imaging, electrophysiology, cardio-oncology, critical care)
  • Allied healthcare provider(s) (1-2)
  • Cardiovascular specialist(s) with interest in systems change / optimizing care based on patient values / preferences
  • Proven experience and interest in development and publication of Guidelines using GRADE plus clinical statements
  • Enthusiasm to provide leadership, clinical and academic guidance to Guideline / CPU panels
  • Understanding of provider barriers to optimal cardiovascular health and care and knowledge of how Guidelines and related knowledge translation can help address these barriers
  • Awareness of needs of the broad cardiovascular care community, primary care providers, allied health care providers and patients, and the ability to connect the CCS with other content experts

For more information, please email Stephanie Boutette at boutette@ccs.ca.

The CCS is seeking applications or nominations from CCS members in good standing for potential succession into the role of Guidelines Committee Chair – learn more.

Membership Committee

Chair: Lisa Mielniczuk, University of Ottawa Heart Institute

The CCS Membership Committee provides overall expert advice for current, new and suggested products and services as required. The Membership Committee makes recommendations on member recruitment, retention and engagement strategies.
 
The Terms of Reference for the Membership Committee have recently been updated and we are currently seeking two positions representing the following specialties: cardiac surgery and pediatric cardiology.

Three-year term

The CCS Membership Committee is a CCS standing committee with the mandate to:

  1. Oversee the implementation of the programs and services outlined in the membership section of the Strategic Plan;
  2. Provide overall expert advice for current, new and suggested products and services as required; and
  3. To report to Council and to engage Council and CCS standing committees to develop products and services that will benefit the membership and to encourage membership participation/engagement in CCS activities and growth by promoting the CCS.

For more information about this position, please contact Linda Palmer, Director, Membership Services and Trainee Programs at palmer@ccs.ca.

Scientific Program Committee

Chair: Shelley Zieroth

The Canadian Cardiovascular Congress (CCC) is a complex meeting with an extensive Canadian Cardiovascular Society (CCS) program. The CCS program includes Plenaries, Workshops, Accredited Symposia, Trainee Sessions, Abstracts, Featured Research and integrative functions such as the Kick-off, and networking opportunities. The complexity of the CCC and its organizational policy, as well as its resource and financial requirements, benefits from strategic oversight from a designated, committed individual who is responsible for overall CCC integration.

The SPC Chair heads the committee, and works very closely with the CCS Manager, Congress. In addition, the SPC Chair is assisted by their administrative assistant who is responsible for the following tasks: set up all teleconferences; take minutes on all teleconferences; and assist the SPC Chair in execution of their role.

The term of appointment is 4 years: 1 year as incoming (vice) chair, 2 years as chair and 1 year as past chair.

Chair Qualifications
A candidate for Chair of the SPC must possess the following qualifications:

  • Have previous experience on the CCS Scientific Program Committee;
  • Be a well established and highly respected cardiovascular health researcher and medical expert;
  • Be a CCS member in good standing who represents both academic and community cardiovascular specialties as well as the basic sciences;
  • Be an enthusiastic, results motivated cardiovascular medical practitioner, scientist and educator, or an established scientist with strong ties to the medical community, who is committed to developing and delivering excellent programming at the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress; and
  • Be well connected within the cardiovascular health network and posse’s strong leadership and communication skills that will serve in fostering collaboration among participating organizations in the interest of program integration.

The Scientific Program Committee (SPC) is responsible for the development of high-caliber CCS scientific programming at the CCC. The SPC plans and selects all content for CCC with a focus on delivering education aimed at improving the quality of care provided by our membership and improving health outcomes for those who receive care. Representatives from various areas of care and sub-specialization are selected to represent the CCS membership as part of this committee.

One-to-four-year term

The Scientific Program Committee (SPC) is a CCS standing committee with the mandate to develop a high-quality scientific program for the CCS Annual Scientific Meeting portion of the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress (CCC) and to help extend the delegates learning experience over the period between congresses.

The Scientific Program Committee is responsible for:

  1. Developing the overall CCS scientific program format and program content;
  2. Invite identified plenary speakers;
  3. Co-ordinate reviewers for all abstract submissions;
  4. Liaise with the Congress education partners (ie participating allied health organizations), and to CCS Affiliates to inform overall CCC program content and cohesion.

Committee members are expected to:

  1. Participate in 3-5 teleconferences and one face to face meeting at CCC in October;
  2. Participate in the CCS Members Needs Assessment;
  3. Recommend and contact prospective speakers if required;
  4. Be active members of sub-committees (Workshops, Featured Research, Young Investigator Award Selection, etc.); and
  5. Be ambassadors for the meeting in their communities during their term

For more information about this position, please contact Danielle Hurtubise, Manager, Congress at hurtubise@ccs.ca.

External Relations Committee

Chair: Rodney Zimmermann, Regina General Hospital

The CCS External Relations Committee candidates should have an interest in establishing and advancing the relationships the CCS holds with other national and international organizations. Partner organizations may include physician organizations, health charities, advocacy partners, research groups, cardiovascular allied health professional organizations, etc. Committee members are expected to commit time to read material in advance of, and actively participate in: up to four teleconferences per year, periodic email correspondence, and a face-to-face meeting at the annual Canadian Cardiovascular Congress.

Two-year term

The CCS External Relations Committee is a standing committee of the CCS and reports to Council. The External Relations Committee is responsible for:

  1. Providing advice to Council for current, new and suggested strategic relationships with national societies, e.g. Canadian Medical Association, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada;
  2. Providing advice to Council on current, new and suggested strategic relationships with international societies, e.g. American College of Cardiology, World Heart Federation, and Saudi Cardiovascular Society;
  3. Suggesting new strategic alliances and partnerships to CCS Council which can strengthen the CCS and benefit its members; and
  4. Recommending appropriate resource allocations (human and financial) as they relate to specific relationships with other organizations.

For more information about this position, please contact Carolyn Pullen, CEO at pullen@ccs.ca

Journals Committee

Chair: Sean McMurtry, University of Alberta

The CCS Journal Committee provides strategic oversight of CCS’s peer-reviewed journals – the Canadian Journal of Cardiology (CJC), CJC Open, CJC Pediatric and Congenital Heart disease (CJC PC) – and undertakes a number of initiatives each year that contribute to growing the Journals’ brand and impact. Candidates should have knowledge and experience related to academic publishing or as a member of an editorial board. Please note: the CCS Journal Committee is a separate entity to the CJC, CJC Open, and CJC PC Editorial Boards.

Two-year term

The CCS Journal Committee is a standing committee that reports to the CCS Council. The committee supports in optimizing the reach and uptake of the CCS journals. The CCS Journal Committee is responsible for:

  1. Overseeing the performance of the CCS journals, including advising on its overall strategic direction, and identifying opportunities, threats, risks, and mitigation strategies;
  2. Identifying emerging topics and technologies that could optimize dissemination, promotion, and uptake of the CCS journal activities; and
  3. Ensuring  the CCS journals have appropriate representation and oversight (i.e., Editors-in-Chiefs, editorial board members).

Committee members are expected to: Participate in at least one (1) teleconference during each fiscal year and one (1) in-person meeting during the CCC.

For more information about this position, please contact Kendra Pelland, Program Manager, Policy and Advocacy at pelland@ccs.ca.

CCS Development Committee

Chair: Jeff Healey, Hamilton General Hospital, Hamilton

The CCS Development Committee is advisory in scope, providing expert, informed advice and recommendations to the CCS Executive and Council on:

  • CCS corporate policy and strategy related to relationships with for-profit stakeholders to guide CCS development activities and those undertaken together with the CCSA and CCS Affiliates.  
  • Risks and opportunities for the CCS and, by extension, the CCSA and CCS Affiliates, regarding relationships and activities with for-profit stakeholders.

Two-year term (once renewable)

Committee Member
CCS Development Committee members have knowledge of the CCS, the CCSA, the CCS Affiliates, and the for-profit environment. Members have well-developed and demonstrated understanding of financial stewardship and an interest in the growth and development of responsible, appropriate and sustainable exchanges of value between for-profit stakeholders and the CCS, its Affiliates and the CCSA.  

For more information about these positions, please contact Shauna Almas, CCS Director of Development at almas@ccs.ca.

Advocacy Committee

Chair: James Tam

The Advocacy Committee supports the CCS in influencing policy and advocating for the heart health of Canadians. Specifically, the committee guides the CCS in identifying priorities that are representative of and in the best interest of the cardiovascular specialist community to advance heart health for all.

One-to-two-year terms

The Advocacy Committee is a standing committee of the CCS and reports to Council. The Advocacy Committee is responsible for:

  1. Advising on the development of CCS’s advocacy plans by supporting staff in identifying national-level policy and advocacy issues and priorities;
  2. Evaluating how to respond to issues;
  3. Guiding the CCS in developing policy documents, and contributing to CCS submissions to federal or provincial consultations;
  4. Representing the CCS to the public and the media, and championing the policies and positions the CCS adopts;
  5. Participating and attending annual federal government lobby activities, as required; and
  6. Evaluating success using an established list of key performance indicators.

Issues in the cardiovascular field that this committee may work on in the next two years could include (but are not limited to) the following: Cardiovascular care quality; Access to real-time data; Value Based Health Care; Improving Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Cardiovascular medicine; Vaping; Pharmacare; and Virtual Care

For more information about this position, please contact Kendra Pelland, Program Manager, Policy and Advocacy, at pelland@ccs.ca.

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