Society membership is voluntary and can be granted upon fulfilment of requirements defined in Article 13 of the Statute, and signing the statement of joining the Society and abiding by the Statute and other general acts.
There are four types of memberships:
- Founding member
- Member
- Associate member (medical doctor specialising in clinical microbiology)
- Honorary member (upon governing body’s decision, an expert particularly renowned for their research into clinical microbiology)
Society members are medical doctors specialised in clinical microbiology or related disciplines.
To become a member, a candidate must fulfil the following criteria:
- Possession of a medical degree, or other in accordance with Article 12 of the Statute
- Completed specialisation, or ongoing if they are applying for an associate member
- Recommendations from at least two members of the Society.
Member rights
A member of the Society has a right to:
- Equally with other members participate in the fulfilment of Society’s objectives and activities
- Directly participate in the decision-making both in assemblies and via Society’s bodies
- Elect and be elected for Society’s bodies
- Be completely informed about Society’s work and activities in a timely manner
- Give suggestions and start initiatives that are in accordance with the Statute and the decisions made by Society’s bodies
- Use all the services the Society provides for its members
- Cease to be a member
- Exercise other rights stated in the Statute and Society’s other acts.
Every member can commence a process in a competent basic court to declare Society’s general act as null and void if it was not adopted in accordance with the provisions in the Statute or other general act of the Society, i.e. to declare an individual act of the Society null and void if it was adopted against the law, the Statute, or other individual act of the Society, within 15 days from the day of learning of the act, with the latest date for the commencement being 6 months since the act’s adoption.
By declaring an act from the previous paragraph null and void, the rights obtained by a conscientious third party remain intact.
The process for declaring an act null and void from Paragraph 2 of this Article is conducted in accordance with the provisions of the relevant law on litigation.
Member duties
A Society member is required to:
- Actively contribute to the fulfilment of Society’s objectives
- Participate in accordance with their interest in Society’s activities
- Suggest, analyse and solve individual questions in Society’s bodies and participate in instigating activities for implementing conclusions reached by Society’s bodies
- Perform financial and other duties in a timely manner and in accordance with adopted criteria, with the aim of carrying out planned activities
- Pay their membership fee regularly
- Abide by the Statute and other general acts and decisions made by Society’s bodies
- Attend meetings of Society’s bodies they are a member of
- Preserves Society’s honour
- Performs other activities delegated to them by Society’s bodies
- Fulfils other duties in accordance with the Statute and other acts of the Society.
Member responsibility
Every member is responsible for their actions within the Society and outside of it, if it can in any way be related to the activities and objectives of the Society.
A member whose behaviour and actions are against the decisions made by Society’s bodies, or whose dishonourable acts constitute a breach of the Statute and objectives of the Society, thereby bringing the Society into disrepute, can be expelled from the Society by an Assembly act.
Membership
Every member is required to pay their membership fee regularly while their membership is active.
The decision on the membership fee is made annually by the Assembly, following a recommendation from the governing board.
The membership fee is to be paid annually for the current year, before the end of the first quarter.
Every member can help the Society financially and otherwise, however that does not make them eligible to any additional or special rights.
The Vice-President of the Society keeps a record of membership fee payments and submits a report to the governing board every six months.
A member who has not paid their membership fee for six months ceases to be a Society member by the governing board’s decision.
Membership Cessation
Membership can be cancelled by:
- Quitting membership by previously submitted written request from a member
- Assembly’s decision on member expulsion in accordance with Article 16 of this Statute
- Member’s death
- Deleting a member from the records due to their failure to pay membership fees.
Membership in the Society, as defined by Article 1 of the previous paragraph, ceases on the day of receipt of a written request for membership cancellation.
Member’s mandate in all Society’s bodies they were elected to ceases from the day of membership cessation.
Society membership is cancelled by removal from members’ records in case of failing to pay membership fee, which the governing body determines in a special decision.
