IBMS Council Meeting Summary

The meeting took place in person on Friday 13th December at the IBMS offices in Coldbath Square, London and involved national and regional IBMS Council members and IBMS Executives. Chaired by Joanna Andrew, IBMS President, this is the summary of the discussions.

Healthcare Science Funding Request

Debra Padgett, IBMS Past President, presented a paper on the Academy for Healthcare Science (AHCS) requesting the IBMS to continue to fund them for their Professional Bodies Council. IBMS Council has previously contributed to the Academy.

It was reported that the Academy has made progress in its governance processes, including the election of a new president and the development of a strategic direction. Chris Hopkins will start his tenure as President from 1st July 2025. 

Council was asked to consider approving a contribution to maintain its membership in the Academy of Healthcare Science Professional Bodies Council.

Following discussion, Council agreed to support the funding request and raised their congratulations for the Academy’s first President. 

International engagement

David Wells, IBMS Chief Executive, discussed a proposal for the Institute’s international work set out in the 2022 Strategy. The proposal outlined how the Institute might bring together interested parties from across the globe to discuss professional topics and identify key themes and promote international membership. The group would not overlap with the work of other organisations.

Council agreed to proceed with the proposal.

Support for International Standard Organisation's (ISO) Quality Management Systems Technical Committee Meeting

Council discussed a request for financial support for an IBMS Fellow to attend meetings of the ISO Quality Management Systems Technical Committee. The cost of attendance was expected to slightly exceed the individual representative’s expenses limit.

Following a discussion, which included considerations of the individual’s expertise and the IBMS's representation within the BSI, Council agreed to support the request.

IBMS Treasurer

As the Treasurer’s term of office was drawing to its conclusion, Council was canvassed regarding expressions of interest to fulfil the role and, as no expressions of interest were received, their support was sought to re-appoint Mr Nigel Coles for another year.

Council supported the re-appointment of Mr Coles to the role of Treasurer.

Educational Professional Standards Committee

The minutes of the July and October meetings were received. Council discussed the change in the HCPC English language requirements and the progress on the development of digital IBMS top-up modules.

Council also discussed the quality assurance process for the higher specialist diploma, which included a review of exam papers and moderation of marking. They congratulated IBMS Council Member Tahmina Hussain who has been elected to the Executive Committee of Heads of University Centres of Biomedical Sciences (HUCBMS).

Membership and Marketing Committee

The minutes of the meeting held on 18 November were received. Council discussed the IBMS Award categories and eligibility criteria for 2025, the Harvey's Lab Tour video, which will be a valuable resource upon completion, and the design of the 25-year badges for 2025.

President’s update

Joanna presented a review of her first year in office as President. In 2024 she has been to London 26 times, flown to Belfast, Dublin, Denmark and Rotterdam, attending meetings as far north as Darlington and as far south as Bournemouth. Joanna has visited venues such as Westminster (Commons and Lords), the Royal Institution and even the Labour Party Conference. However, she has not visited Wales or Scotland, and so that is high priority for her to visit next year.

Joanna highlighted some of the meetings and events she has attended on behalf of the profession recently, these included: Pathology Alliance Meeting, Northern Ireland Advancing Healthcare Awards, Synnovis laboratory visit, BIVDA event at the Houses of Parliament, European Association of Biomedical Scientists (EPBS) Conference in Rotterdam, ABHI Event at Houses of Parliament, IBMS West Midlands Region and Birmingham Branch AGM, Advances in Transfusion Symposium (on line).

Past President’s update

Debra Padgett, IBMS Past President was attending her final meeting on Council before the end of her tenure. She informed the meeting of her recent attendance at events including: Qatar University MSc Accreditation Event, Northern Ireland Advancing Healthcare Awards, Moving Forward in Infection Diagnostics - Chief Scientific Officer’s event, NHS Life Sciences online conference and the RCPath Council meeting.

Debra concluded with her thanks to Council for their support:

As my tenure as Past President comes to an end, I want to take a moment to express my deepest gratitude to each of you for your unwavering support and dedication over the past 12 years.

Serving as your President has been the greatest honour of my career, and it would not have been possible without the collective wisdom, commitment, and collaboration of this remarkable Council.

Chief Executive’s update

David Wells, IBMS Chief Executive presented his update on his recent meetings and events that he had attended to promote the profession.
On the subject of education turnaround times, David acknowledged that the education team is working through a backlog of portfolio applications and is making progress in reducing the backlog. The new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system is expected to improve the situation, its implementation is due during 2025.

Additional resources have been allocated to address the backlog, including the appointment of an educational technologist and office management support. The number of verifiers and examiners has been increased to improve turnaround times which has led to fewer complaints related to verification times, indicating a smoother process. The processing of laboratory training approvals remains a challenge, but a mechanism of conditional approval is in place for labs with previous training approval. Overall, the education team is making progress in addressing the backlog and remains committed to improving turnaround times.

Date of next meeting

Friday 7th March 2025