Inaugural Welsh Region AGM held in Cardiff

The inaugural meeting of the IBMS Welsh Region took place on Saturday 21st November 2015.

The new Welsh Region was created this year in order to better meet the needs of biomedical scientists working within Wales.

The meeting, incorporating the South East Wales (SEW) Branch AGM and the South West Region AGM, took place at the Dental Hospital Lecture Theatre, University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff.

First on the agenda was the SEW Branch AGM, which included the Branch Secretary report, Branch Treasurer Report and the Welsh Council Member Report. The SEW Branch Committee is made up of 12 members, with Chair, Geoff Lloyd CSci FIBMS; Secretary, Lorna Vale CSci FIBMS and Treasurer, Helen Archer CSci FIBMS.

The Branch AGM was followed by a talk on “Microbiology Reorganisation in North Wales” from David Williams CSci FIBMS, a Laboratory Manager at Betsi Cadwaladr UHB. David’s talk gave an interesting, first-hand account of the ‘hub and spoke’ delivery of microbiology services in North Wales.

The AGM of the South West Region followed, where the new Region Committee was elected. Andy Usher CSci FIBMS was confirmed as Chair; Malcom Owen CSci FIBMS as Secretary and David Gurney CSci FIBMS takes the position of Treasurer. Secretary and Treasurer Reports were given, followed by a comprehensive training and education update from Craig Donaldson, Acting Head of School at Plymouth University.

The Alan Paull Memorial Lecture, “Camelot Rising”, sponsored by Becton Dickinson, was delivered by David Eccleston CSci FIBMS, Head of Modernising Scientific Careers at Liverpool Clinical Laboratories. His highly entertaining talk focused on developing the workforce to meet future service needs.

Finally the first Welsh Regional Committee was elected, with Jen Hancock CSci FIBMS as Chair, Lee Peters CSci FIBMS as Secretary and David Williams CSci FIBMS as Treasurer, with one officer elected from each of the Welsh branches.

Jen Hancock was delighted at how well received the AGM for the new Welsh Region was: “The inaugural Welsh Region AGM was well attended and deemed a resounding success for all involved.”

Thanks to Lynda Rigby for joining us on the day.