ETHICS Committee

I. General

The ERA Ethics Committee is a very important advising committee for the ERA Council with regard to ethical matters or debates.

It also makes sure that the Council and all ERA Committees act consistently with the purposes for which ERA was founded and that they follow the rules of the Constitution and Rules.

It has the power to inform the Council, via the President and the Secretary-Treasurer, of any documented violations of these rules. The Council will then take appropriate steps to ensure the rules are properly followed.

All the activities, including manuscripts/position statements, promoted/issued by the Committee must be submitted to the Council for approval before implementation/submission for publication.

II. Committee Members, nominations, terms and rotation

1. 5 members (1 Chair + 4 members) and must all reside in different countries;
2. None of the members can be a current Council Member and they cannot become one while serving on the Committee;
3. Candidates must be Full members and have been active ERA members for at least 5 consecutive years (to be considered at the time of candidacy). When submitting their candidacy, they must fill in the appropriate ERA Ethics Committee candidacy application form, send supporting letters from two Full ERA members and fill in their DoI using the special online form;
4. An open call regarding the free positions must be posted on the website, and an e-mail blast must be sent to all Full members, the year before the termination of the mandate of any of the members;
5. All members are nominated by the Committee and must be approved by the Council before their term can start;
6. All members remain in office for 5 years and cannot be re-elected;
7. The Chair is elected by the members of the committee but must be confirmed by the Council before he/she can become effective;
8. Decisions are to be taken by a majority of the members, including the Chair. The Chair has a casting vote;
9. No more than 3 persons can leave the Ethics Committee at the same time – if this happens, the persons needed for the quorum must continue for one extra year – the decision regarding who will remain must be made by secret ballot within the Committee unless the necessary number of members withdraw voluntarily;
10. If a member leaves the Committee before ending his/her term, a new member must be elected within the next 12 months, following the procedure described above. The newly elected member will remain on the Committee for the normal term of 5 years;
11. A Committee member who does not participate in two consecutive meetings, without valid reasons, can be asked to resign from the Committee: a vote of the majority of the Ethics Committee members, and then the Council, is required for this to become effective;
12. For the rules regarding the reimbursement policy for Ethics Committee Board Members who participate in face-to-face meetings, for example, organised at the time of the annual ERA Congress and at the SEID (if any are organised), one must refer to the General Rules for ERA Committees;
13. Diplomas for Ethics Committee Board Members. For this matter, one should refer to the appropriate section in the General Rules for ERA Committees.

III. Duties

1. The Chair can be invited to participate in Council meetings when deemed necessary and only for the specific part of the meeting concerning ethical matters. He/she will have voice, but not vote;
2. The Council can ask that, for specific issues/topics, a Council member be invited to participate in the relevant part of the Ethics Committee meeting in which this issue/topic will be discussed. The Council member, nominated by Council, will have voice but not vote during the Ethics Committee Meeting;
3. The Ethics Committee Board Members should meet regularly to pursue its tasks/goals, possibly via teleconference, however, and only if needed, one face-to-face meeting is possible;
4. Once a year the Chair must present a report (both technical and financial) of the activity of the Ethics Committee to the Council, normally at the pre-Congress Council Meeting for review, discussion and eventual approval;
5. The Ethics Committee should suggest to the Chair of the Congress Scientific Committee speakers for the annual ERA Congress for ethical talks: all the details can be found in the appropriate section of the Specifications for Organising the ERA’s Congresses and Meetings.
6. All publications, if any, and initiatives must clearly mention that the Ethics Committee is an official body of ERA and must comply with what is written regarding this matter in the General Rules for ERA Committees. The sentence approved by Council related to this matter is: “This article (to be adapted accordingly) was written by (to be adapted accordingly) on behalf of the ERA Ethics Committee which is an official body of the ERA (European Renal Association)”.

Last update: December 2022