There is a
consensus amongst researchers of the history of medicine that
early Arab and Muslim physicians had played a very important role
in the development of medical science during the renaissance of
Islamic civilization, which spanned for eight centuries. This
was achieved through translating earlier medical and scientific
scripts and developing these sciences in the light of their clinical
expertise.
Despite the
above fact, it is well-known that, as yet, the full potential
of the Islamic medical heritage has not been investigated in a
way that shows its real role and importance in the development
of modern medicine; especially its effect on the European Renaissance.
So far, only a little part of this important heritage has been
studied or come to light. Most of the scripts of Islamic medicine
are dusting on the shelves of private and some public libraries
around the world.
In the light
of this, a number of physicians, scholars and historians called
for reviving this heritage on an international level. This is
to be achieved through organization and teamwork. And this is
how the idea of the International Society for the History of Islamic
Medicine emerged.
The first
meeting of this society convened between 1-3 December 2000 in
Doha (QATAR) and was chaired by HE Dr.H.A.Hajar Al-Binali, Minister
of Health in Qatar. A number of physicians and historians have
attended this meeting.
An
executive council has been set up and The founding members are:
Dr.
HajarA.Hajar Al-Binali, Minister of Health in Qatar, Honorary
President.
Prof.
Dr. Abdul Nasser Kaadan (Syria), President
Prof. Dr. Faisal Abdullatif Alnasir
(Bahrain), Secretary General and
Treasurer.
Prof. Dr. Nil Sari (Turkey), First Vice-Chairman.
Dr. Husain Nagamia (USA), Second Vice-Chairman.
Dr. Mehdi Mohaghegh (Iran), Third Vice-Chairman.
Dr. Sharif Kaf Al-Ghazal (England), member.
Dr. Mostafa Shehata (Egypt), member.
The By-Laws
were discussed and approved during the meeting. It was also decided
that Doha would be the permanent location of the society.
Membership
in the society is open to everyone who has got an interest in
or would like to contribute to the study of the History of Islamic
Medicine.
We look forward
to receiving support and help from our fellow scholars and researchers
all over the world.
We hope we
will be able (Insha Allah) to achieve our aims for the benefit
of mankind through bringing to light the virtues of this vast
heritage.
The founding members of the society
Standing
(from left):
Dr.H.Nagamia, Dr. Abdul Nasser Kaadan, Dr.S.Kaf Al-Ghazal, Dr.H.A.Hajar,
Prof.
Faisal Abdullatif Alnasir, Dr.M.Mohaghegh, Dr. M.Shehata
Sitting
(from left):
Dr.N.Sari , Dr.R.Hajar (The Editor of the journal)
|
By-Law
Of the International Society for The History of Islamic
Medicine
|
Article (1)
There shall be established hereunder, a Scientific Society in
Doha - Qatar, called the "International Society for the History
of Islamic Medicine" with the following purposes:
1. To promote public awareness of the contributions undertaken
by scientists in the field of Islamic medical sciences.
2. To establish a library to include manuscripts and indexes
of the old medical manuscripts, photocopies of such manuscripts
in addition to the recently published books of relevance to the
history of Islamic Medicine.
3. To issue a Journal twice a year for publishing researches
and articles related to history of Islamic Medicine.
4. To convene International Meetings and Conferences every two
years
5. To allocate a nominal prize to be awarded every two years
to the best contribution to the history of Islamic Medicine.
6. Cooperation with other institutions/organizations having similar
purposes.
Article (2)
The Society will be composed of Regular Members, Student members,
and Honorary members.
Regular member: Shall mean any person or individual, irrespective
of nationality and religion, concerned with history of Islamic
Medicine and whose membership is approved by the society's Executive
Council and will pay the prescribed fees. He/she can vote/hold
office.
Student member : He/she can not vote or hold office.
Honorary member: Shall mean a person who has undertaken tremendous
achievements in History of Islamic Medicine sphere or a person
who has offered considerable financial contributions to support
the Society's activities. Honorary members shall be designated
by the Executive Council and awarded the Certificate of Honorary
membership. He/she shall not vote or hold office.
Article (3)
Applications for membership shall be submitted to the Secretary
General, and accompanied by a brief CV. Acceptance shall take
effect after payment of US$ 25 fee. Student membership fees application
must be accompanied by proof/letter that he/she is a student.
Student membership shall be US$ 10.
The member will then receive a membership certificate. The Active
member shall receive on a regular basis the Journal of the Society,
news bulletin, and all publications related to the Society.
Membership shall be terminated under the following circumstances:
1) Official resignation.
2) Cessation of payment of membership fee.
Article (4)
The financial resources of the Association shall consist of:
1. Annual membership fees.
2. Donations offered to the association by organizations, agencies
and individuals.
3. Other resources as may be approved by the Executive Council
from time
to time.
Article (5)
The Society will be run by an Executive Council of 9 members
and composed of President, three (3) Vice Presidents, a Secretary
General, a treasurer and 3 members for 2 years renewable. Members
of the Executive Council shall be elected by the Administrative
Council.
The Executive Council will be assisted by an Administrative Council
composed of the Executive Council in addition to National Delegates.
Each State will be represented by a member in Society's Administrative
Council.
Article (6)
The President of the Society will be elected by the Administrative
Council to a two-year term and shall not serve for more than two
consecutive terms. Duties and responsibilities of the President
shall be to represent the society in all conferences and meetings,
to approve Agenda of the Executive Council, Administrative Council
and General Assembly, and to Chair all meetings.
Article (7)
The Vice-Presidents shall be elected by the Administrative Council
to a three years term. Their duties and responsibilities shall
be to assume all duties and authority of the President in the
latter's absence or otherwise by delegation by the President.
Quorum: The presence of 50% of the members of the Administrative
Council and Executive Council shall constitute a quorum.
Voting: Voting by the Administrative Council may be made in person
or can be submitted by post or e-mail.
Article (8)
The Secretary General will be elected by the Administrative Council
to a 3-year term renewable for one time only.
The Secretary General shall be responsible for conduction of
communication with all members of the Society as well as the other
relevant associations, planning the Agenda of the meetings of
the Executive Council and Administrative Council.
Article (9)
The Treasurer shall be elected by the Administrative Council
to a 3-year term. He must have permanent office in Qatar, in which
is the Society's headquarters. The duties and responsibilities
of the Treasurer shall be to care for the Society's funds deposited
in US$ in the Society's name in a Qatari Bank. Cheques must be
signed by the Treasurer and the President or one of the Vice-Presidents.
The Treasurer will submit to the Executive Council an annual report
on the financial turnover.
Article (10)
The National Delegates shall be elected by members of the Society
of their representative states. They must maintain on-going contacts
with the General Secretary of the Society and report to him on
the Society's activities in that particular country.
Article (11)
Meetings of the Executive Council shall be held in the headquarter
once a year as scheduled by the President of the Society, whereas
the Administrative Council shall meet once every two years in
the course of the International Conference.
Article (12)
The Executive Council shall pass its decisions by a simple majority
vote and in case of equality of votes the Chairman shall have
a casting vote.
Article (13)
The meetings of the General Assembly (all members) will be chaired
by the Society's President. Such a meeting will be held every
two years in the course of the International Conference for the
discussion of the Society's activities, and presentation of proposals,
and suggestions made by the members.
During these meetings, an administrative report will be presented
by the Secretary General and a financial report audited by an
independent auditor to be submitted by the Treasurer.
Article (14)
The place and date of International Conferences will be determined
by the Executive Council.
Article (15)
As this Society is formed only recently, this By-law is subject
to modification by the Executive Council without referral to the
General Assembly until this paragraph is nullified by the General
Assembly.
