Health Sciences and Medicine SIG Identity Card

The Health Sciences and Medicine SIG was created in 1995. The group meets twice a year and its members are ESP teachers in schools for health professionals (doctors, dentists, midwives, nurses, etc.). Their interests include syllabus design and development for students in the health professions, specialized materials preparation, and language skill evaluation and certification, as well as research into ESP discourse.

1. Membership
Any fully paid-up GERAS member can become a member of the Health SIG. All they have to do is to get in touch with the group coordinators. GERAS non-members may attend a SIG meeting to form an opinion, but they will be requested to subscribe to GERAS if they wish to keep attending SIG meetings.

2. SIG Aims
The group aims to:
- share knowledge and teaching skills;
- cater to the needs of our different audiences;
- keep in touch with our partners: the French National Association of Medical Students (ANEMF), the Franco-British Medical Association (AMFB), and so on;
- keep up with research and support our younger colleagues’ research projects;
- open up to new technologies;
- try and respond to everybody’s needs;
- welcome new colleagues with contacts, resources, etc.

3. SIG Meetings
Our group meets twice a year:
- during the annual GERAS conference;
- soon after the start of the academic year, usually in Paris.
The agenda for the next meeting is collectively agreed upon at the end of each meeting. An updated reminder is mailed to all members about a month before the meeting so as to encourage them to reflect on their contribution to the discussions. Indeed, everybody is invited to contribute and participate actively, whether formally or not, on an individual basis or not. However, the groupis no research unit and the presentations delivered within its context cannot be listed on a CV, even though the Health SIG may offer a supportive and dedicated
audience for research work. After each meeting, a written report is sent to all SIG members by the group coordinators before it is posted on the GERAS website.

4. Election of the Coordinators
- Scope of Action and Mandate
Two coordinators are in charge of the Health SIG; they organize the meetings and set the agenda in agreement with the group members. They are the group’s spokespersons on all matters regarding the Health SIG with the GERAS board.
- Election Process
The coordinators are elected for three years, renewable once. The vote takes place during the September-October meeting. Applications - as a ‘ticket’- should be sent to the current coordinators at least one month before the vote, together with a Statement of Purpose
to be sent over to all eligible voters. The vote is a secret ballot. A simple majority at the first round is required to be elected. If no majority emerges, a second round is organized, and the ticket getting the most votes is elected.
- Voters
All fully paid-up Health SIG members may vote. Those who cannot attend the vote may do so by proxy: anypresent voter may then hold a maximum of two proxy votes.