01 September 2017

The Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland (ACPGBI), a registered charity, is seeking to appoint two patient trustees to their newly established Trustee Board. Patient Trustees will have a particular focus on the optimisation of the benefit the charity seeks to provide to colorectal patients and the wider public. However, patient trustees will also be expected to give oversight to all other areas for which the trustees have responsibility. The Trustee Board is composed of a mix of medical and non-medical members. The charity is composed of some 1000+ surgeons, nurses and allied professionals who work in the area of Coloproctology, which includes all diseases of the lower part of the intestines. This includes both functional illness (for example Crohn’s disease) as well as bowel and rectal cancer. Charity trustees share the ultimate responsibility for governing a charity and directing how it is managed and run, and they remain entirely independent of those involved in the day-to-day management of a charity. The ACPGBI trustees hold approximately 3 face-to-face meetings per annum, and a reasonable level of attendance is expected. A prospective candidate should have a strong belief in the highest standards of clinical care, and a desire to make a difference to the charity, whose aims are to advance the science and practice of Coloproctology. It does this by promoting best clinical practice, with education and training in the speciality, supports research and audit, and disseminates information to both professionals and the public. A major event is the annual conference, which attracts some 700+ delegates from the UK and internationally. The charity is funded exclusively by annual subscription of its membership and supplies professional support and development to those members. It also incorporates trainee surgeons in its work, and has a separate charitable body which raises funds for research, the Bowel Disease Research Foundation, and which has its own trustees. It also includes a group of volunteer patient and patient advocates (the Patient Liaison Group) who advise on all areas of patient concern. The Association has an Executive who formulate strategy, and a Council which meets three times each year, and which is composed of representatives from regional groups (Chapters), non-surgical representatives from Oncology, Pathology and Radiology and other allied professionals. Only two paid employees form its Secretariat, and it relies on the goodwill of its members to deliver its aims and objectives in all other respects. Patient Trustees are expected to declare any conflicts of interest; they must not be medically or surgically qualified in the field of Coloproctology or be a paid employee of a charity allied to Coloproctology (although they can be an unpaid volunteer). They, nor any of their close family, should be employed by a medical device company or a pharmaceutical company which supplies the field of Coloproctology. Those who would like to consider applying are urged to look at the Charity Commission pages to ensure their eligibility, and to learn more about the role of a trustee, and also to research fully the ACPGBI website, including its patient pages for further information. If you wish to apply to be a Patient Trustee, please do so by letter to Professor RJC Steele, Chair of the Board of Trustees and include your CV. Email your application to admin@acpgbi.org.uk  with Patient Trustee Application in the subject line. Deadline for applications: 5 pm on Friday 6 October 2017

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