This Society shall be known as the “Asian Society of Cardiovascular Imaging (ASCI),” hereinafter referred to as the “Society.”

Place of Business Office shall be at:
#202, 7, Angol-ro 11beon-gil, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 13572, Korea
or such other address as may subsequently be decided upon by Executive Committee.

Its objects are:

• To advance the science and art of cardiovascular imaging through an educationalnon-profit organization in Asia
• To bring together radiologists, cardiologists and individuals in related fields toimprove the level of clinical practice, research and education of cardiovascular imagingin Asia
• To provide scientific meetings for the sharing of research results, preliminary works, ideas and knowledge through invited lectures and paper presentations
• To provide continuing education through refresher courses, and disseminate knowledge through publications of the Society

Membership is open to those satisfying the following criteria:

• ORDINARY MEMBERS
  Ordinary Membership shall be open to all radiologists and cardiologists with a proven interest in practice, teaching or research in cardiovascular imaging, and to other medical practitioners, scientists working in related fields.
  Ordinary Members must be able to demonstrate commitment to the practice, teaching or research in cardiovascular imaging and related fields in Asia and Oceania.
  Ordinary Members shall have completed training as a resident and hold a certification of the board from each authority in the related field or similar academic and medical qualification or clinical experience to be considered as a qualified radiologist or cardiologist. All Ordinary Members shall have the right to vote and to hold office in Executive Committee.
• HONORARY MEMBERS
  Honorary Members shall be persons who are practicing at anywhere in the world and have made outstanding contributions to cardiovascular imaging and related fields, or to the Society for long period and accumulated remarkable achievements in this medical science. Honorary Members shall be elected by Executive Committee upon his/her application and they shall be excluded from payment of all dues. They have no voting rights and shall not be eligible to hold office of Executive Committee. Further they will be invited as potential guest speakers at any congress in the future.
• ASSOCIATE MEMBERS
  Associate Members shall be nurses, technologists, and physicists who have completed at least three years of practice in cardiovascular imaging. They shall have all the privileges of Ordinary Members except the right to vote and hold office. They shall be required to pay all dues and assessments.
• JUNIOR MEMBERS
  Junior members shall be either in a recognized resident training program for imaging or related fields. Junior Members shall be sponsored by an Ordinary Member in good standing. They shall have all the privileges of Ordinary Members except the right to vote and hold office. They shall be required to pay all dues and assessments.
• INTERNATIONAL MEMBERS
  International Members are those members who spend a majority of their professional practice in cardiovascular imaging or related fields but who live outside Asia or Oceania. They shall have all the privileges of Ordinary Members except the right to vote and hold office. They shall be required to pay all dues and assessments. International Members will automatically be transferred to Ordinary Membership when their place of residency changes to Asia or Oceania.
• FOUNDING MEMBERS
  Founding members are those practicing in cardiovascular imaging and related fields who participated in the Inaugural General Assembly of Asian Society of Cardiovascular Imaging who accepted invitations to join the Society. Founding members will be waived of the first year’s membership fee. shall have all the privileges of Ordinary Members and they shall be required to pay all dues and assessments after the first year.
• Status of Membership
  Members shall be considered to be in good standing when their dues are current and they have attended no less than one out of four successive meetings of the Society. Only members in good standing shall have a vote at elections and at the General Assembly and can be nominated and stand for an office in the Society. If a Member has missed four successive meetings, he/she may be notified by the Secretary. If the Member does not attend the subsequent meeting, the Membership may be terminated by the Executive Committee. Members are obliged to further the interests of the Society to the best of their abilities and to refrain from any action which could harm the reputation and the objectives of the Society.

A person wishing to join the Society could sign-up the ASCI website and pay the membership fee.

A copy of the Constitution of the Society shall be furnished to every approved member upon payment of the membership fee.

Membership Fee: A person wishing to maintain his/her membership shall pay the membership fee. A member who paid the membership fee can maintain full privilege and right as a member and shall pay a reduced congress fee. The membership fee includes subscription fee of the official scientific journal of ASCI.

Congress Fee: A non-member who wishes to participate in only the Scientific Congress of ASCI shall pay the full congress fee.

Subscription Fee: A non-member who wishes to subscribe for the Scientific Journal being published by ASCI shall pay the subscription fee.

Membership fee and all other dues will be decided by Executive Committee each year and announced to all members via home page and/or individual mail.

Paid membership period is valid from the date of payment until the end of the calendar year. A person firstly joining after November 1 and before December 31, their membership is effective through the following calendar year and will expire on December 31 of the following year.

For Honorary Members, all dues are waived.

Membership can be terminated through death, voluntary withdrawal, or exclusion.

• Voluntary Withdrawal, which shall only be possible as per December 31st of every calendar year. The ASCI Secretariat has to be notified in writing at least two months in advance. In case of late notification, resignations shall become effective only as of the next withdrawal date. The postmark shall be decisive for the date of notification.
• Exclusion may be decided by the Executive Committee and approved by the General Assembly on serious grounds, such as misbehaviors harming the society.

Members subject to membership fees will receive the membership fee benefits only when the membership fee is paid.

The supreme authority of the Society is vested in the General Assembly of the members presided over by the President of the Society (hereinafter referred to as the “President”).

A General Assembly shall be held, in conjunction with a Scientific Meeting, once a year. The venue for this meeting shall be in Asia, and is to be decided at least 6 months in advance.

At other times, an Extraordinary General Assembly must be called by the President on the request in writing of not less than 25% of the total voting membership or 100 voting members, whichever is the lesser. Extraordinary General Assembly may be called at any time by order of Executive Committee. The notice in writing shall be given to the Secretary setting forth the business that is to be transacted. The Extraordinary General Assembly shall be convened within two months from receiving the requests.

If Executive Committee does not proceed to convene an Extraordinary General Assembly within 2 months after the date of the receipt of the written request, the members who requested for the Extraordinary General Assembly shall convene the Extraordinary General Assembly by giving 10 days’ notice to voting members setting forth the business to be transacted by sending the agenda via post, fax, or e-mail.

At least 2 weeks’ advance notice shall be given of an annual General Assembly and at least 10 days’ notice of an Extraordinary General Assembly. Notice of meeting stating the date, time and place of meeting shall be sent by the Secretary to all voting members. The particulars of the agenda shall be sent by the Secretary via post, fax, or e-mail together with the notice of the annual General Assembly or Extraordinary General Assembly.

Unless otherwise stated in this Constitution, voting by proxy or mail is allowed at all General Assembly.

Under certain circumstances, when holding a General Assembly is not feasible or urgent decision-making is necessary, postal ballot by the members can be considered by the President.

The following points will be considered at the annual General Assembly:

• Previous financial year’s accounts and annual report of the Committee
• Approval of the nomination of the President, Vice Presidents, and Congress President elected by Executive Committee.
• Approval of the Auditors
• Approval of amendment of the Constitution made by Executive Committee.

Any member who wishes to place an item on the agenda of a General Assembly may do so provided the member gives notice to the Secretary at least 30 days before the meeting is due to be held.

At least 10% of the total voting membership or 20 voting members, whichever is the lesser, present at a General Assembly shall form a quorum. Proxies shall be constituted as part of the quorum. Teleconferencing or similar distance communication technologies may be used by members unable to physically attend a General Assembly. Members using such technologies shall be deemed to be physically present for purposes of forming a quorum and for voting.

In the event of there being no quorum at the commencement of a General Assembly, the meeting shall be adjourned for half an hour and should the number then present be insufficient to form a quorum, those present shall be considered to be a quorum, but they shall have no power to amend any of the existing Constitution.

Unless explicitly stated in the agenda, the procedure of General Assembly shall follow this Order of Business:

• Call to order
• Reading of minutes
• President's report
• Secretary-General of Presidential Office’s report
• Secretary-General of Administration Office’s report
• Treasurer’s report
• Other reports
• Unfinished business
• Approval of members
• New business
• Approval of officers
• Other business
• Group photos and adjournment

The Society does not accept financial responsibility for the annual General Assembly and Scientific Congress (hereinafter referred to as the “Society Meeting”). The Congress President and the local organizers, in accepting to host an annual Society Meeting, must accept full responsibility for all costs arising from the Meeting. In the event of an annual Society Meeting generating a surplus, a 50/50 split will be made between the local organizers and the Society.

The administration of the Society shall be entrusted to Executive Committee (hereinafter called the “Committee”), consisting of the following Officers and Ordinary Committee Members to be approved at General Assembly:

• President
• Immediate Past President
• President-elect
• Vice-Presidents (3)
• Secretary-General of Presidential Office
• Secretary-General of Administration Office
• Treasurer
• Scientific Affairs
• International Liaison
• Editor of ASCI Journal
• Congress President
• Information Officer
• Officer for Quality Assurance
• International Fellowship
• Ordinary Committee Members (no more than 2 members per each participating country)
• Officer of Clinical Research
• Chair of ASCI School
• Membership Officer

The President shall be elected at the Executive Committee Meeting. The term of the Officers of the Committee is 2 years. This does not include the Congress President, who shall be elected at every annual Committee Meeting, and the Editor of ASCI Journal, Chair of ASCI School whose term is 4 years. The President has a right to nominate other Officers of the Committee.

All Members of the Committee may be re-elected to the same or related post for a consecutive term of office. Committee Members can serve for a maximum of two consecutive terms in the same post, but may be re-elected to the same post after at least one term out of that post. The Committee Member may continue to serve in the Committee in another post during that term.

Names for the above Officers shall be nominated by the Committee, which shall report the nominations to annual General Assembly after obtaining the consent of the candidates. The candidates must have the official recommendation from its national society representing the field of cardiovascular imaging.

A Committee Meeting shall be held at least once every 12 months after giving at least seven days’ notice to the Committee Members. The President may call a Committee Meeting at any time by giving at least five days’ notice. At least 1/3 of the Committee Members and 1/3 of the Members who have voting right must be present for its proceedings to be valid. Teleconferencing or similar distance communication technologies may be used by the Committee Members unable to physically attend a committee meeting. Members shall be able to verify him/herself when attending the teleconferencing meeting. Members using such technologies shall be deemed to be physically present for the purposes of forming a quorum and voting. Decisions shall be made by a majority vote of those present with open ballot. The President shall not vote in the first instance, but shall have a casting vote in case of a tie. Under certain circumstances, when holding a Committee Meeting is not feasible or urgent decision-making is necessary, e-postal ballot by the Committee Members can be considered by the President.

Any member of the Committee absenting himself / herself from three meetings consecutively without satisfactory explanations shall be deemed to have withdrawn from the Committee and a successor may be co-opted by the Committee to serve until the next annual Committee Meeting.

The duty of the Committee is to organize and supervise the activities of the Society.

Other committees shall be created as required within the Society, and shall be appointed by the Executive Committee.

The office of the Executive Committee will be the same as the place of business of the Society.

The following points will be considered at the Committee Meeting:

• Previous financial year’s accounts and annual report of the Committee
• Election of the President-elect of the following term
• Selection of the future venue of the ASCI Annual Congress
• Election of the Auditors for the following term
• Approval of the other Officers nominated by the President
• Approval of the new Ordinary Committee members

The President and AO and PO Secretary Generals and Ordinary Committee members shall have the voting right during the Committee Meeting. Excluded the voting right of the ordinary committee members from the bidding country or region when the selection of the future venue of the ASCI Annual Congress.

The term for the Ordinary Committee members shall be 3 years per term and may be re-nominated for one more term. EC members can recommend candidates for Ordinary Committee members.
Any new country or region seeking to have representatives on Executive Committee (ordinary members with voting rights) shall demonstrate a commitment to ASCI by having at least 5 paid members per year for the last 3 years, including year of application. The minimum number of paid members over the last 3 years should be at least 20.

The President shall chair all Committee Meetings. He/she shall also represent the Society in its dealings with outside persons. The President may set up a Presidential Office(PO) to facilitate his/her tasks as the President of the Society, and the President will be responsible for finding the sponsor for the costs of this presidential office. The PO will be in charge of the affairs of the Annual Congress (AC), Executive Committee (EC) meeting and the General Assembly (GA), and the Administration Office(AO) will concentrate on management of society, journal publication, website, and membership. The roles of two offices may be further divided details in necessity.

The Vice-President shall assist the President, and deputize for the President in the case of the President’s absence.

The Secretary-General for PO will be in charge of the Annual Congress, managing and executing Executive Committee meeting and General Assembly, and keeping minutes of the Committee meetings.

The Secretary-General for the AO shall keep all records including the up-to-date register of members, except financial, of the Society and shall be responsible for their correctness. As the Administration Office is permanently stationed in Korea, the Secretary-General for AO will be from Korea, and its candidate will be recommended by the Korean Society of Cardiovascular Imaging and confirmed by the EC.

An Assistant Secretary may be appointed by the Committee and shall assist the Secretary-General and deputize for the Secretary-General in the case of the Secretary-General’s absence.

The Treasurer shall keep all funds and collect and disburse all moneys on behalf of the Society and shall keep an account of all monetary transactions and shall be responsible for their correctness.

The Congress President has all responsibilities for the annual Scientific Congress. The Congress President shall have a local office and organizing committee. Local Organizing Committee of the forthcoming Congress shall intimately cooperate with Executive Committee concerning the format and scientific program of the Congress. Annual meeting should follow the Congress Guideline.

President-Elect will be nominated at least one year before the presiding president’s term is to end. He/she must have the following qualifications: 1) hosting of a previous or coming ASCI congress, AND 2) served on the Executive Committee for at least one term, OR 3) current Vice Presidents of ASCI.

After the term of Presidency is completed, he/she will automatically become the Immediate Past-President and serve in the Executive Committee for two years, in order to ensure a smooth transition.

Editor of ASCI Journal will be in charge of the publication of Society Journal in terms of recruiting manuscripts, forming the editorial and review board as well as maintaining the standard of journal.

The Information Officer will be in charge of managing and updating the contents of the ASCI website as well as facilitating communication among the society members. The Officer will form an Information Committee to be in charge of certain sections of the website management.

Officer for Quality Assurance will make sure that the guidelines or other training programs set by the Society are updated regularly. The role will include regularly updating the CCT and CMR guidelines made by the Society and being in charge of the accreditation of training hospitals in future. The QA Officer will set up a committee if necessary for completing these tasks.

Officer of Clinical Research Officer will be in charge of all society activities related to clinical research including the Multi-Research Center.

Chair of School will be in charge of ASCI School. ASCI School is to conduct educational activities other than congress as a sub-organization of ASCI.

The Membership Officer will be in responsible for all matters related to the membership including the recruitment of new members, membership benefits and membership fee.

The International Fellowship Officer will be responsible for the Visiting Fellowship Program which is the connection between participating centers/institutions and applicants.

Advisory Committee consists of one or two senior members who are recommended by the Committee Members, and their (his/her) terms of the Advisory Committee Members are the same as the Officers of the Committee. The Advisory Committee can accommodate up to ten members only.

An International Advisory Committee may be formed with the recommendation from the Committee Members, and (his/her) terms of the International Advisory Committee Members are the same as the Officers of the Committee.

Two voting members shall be elected as Auditors at the Committee Meeting and shall hold office for a term of 2 years. They shall not be re-elected for a consecutive term. This position will not be held by any person acting as officer or member of the Executive Committee.

They:

• Shall be required to audit each year’s accounts and present a report upon them to the Committee Meeting.
• May be requested by the President to audit the Society’s accounts for any period within their tenure of office at any date and make a report to the Committee.

The financial year shall be from 1st January to 31st December of each calendar year.

If the Society at any time acquires any immovable property, such property shall be vested in trustees subject to a declaration of trust.

The trustees of the Society shall:

• Not be more than 4 and not less than 2 in number
• Be elected at the Committee Meeting
• Not affect any sale or mortgage of property without the prior approval of the Committee Meeting.

The office of the trustee shall be vacated:

• If the trustee dies or becomes a lunatic or of unsound mind.
• If he/she is guilty of misconduct of such a kind as to render it undesirable that he continues as a trustee.
• If he/she submits notice of resignation from his/her trusteeship
• If the Executive Committee should decide to elect a new trustee(s) at the Executive Committee meeting with the consent of 1/2 or more than 50% of the voting members present.

No alteration or addition/deletion to this Constitution shall be made except at the Committee Meeting and with the consent of 1/2 or more than 50% of the voting members present.

In the event of any question or matter arising out of any point which is not expressly provided for in this Constitution, the Committee shall have power to use their own discretion.

The Society shall not be dissolved, except with the consent of not less than 3/5 or 60% of the total voting membership of the Committee expressed, either in person or by proxy.

In the event of the Society being dissolved as provided above, all debts and liabilities legally incurred on behalf of the Society shall be fully discharged, and the remaining funds will be disposed of in a manner as the Committee may determine or donated to an approved charity or charities.