Dr. Avinash N. Maharaj

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After several months demanding  that there be transparency and accountability on the part of Council as regards the Boards’s finances  we approach an election without minutes of 2 SGMs and one AGM.
Deloite was engaged to audit the accounts of the MBTT  3 months ago. Members are still awaiting word as to whether work has commenced, how it is progressing, whether there are problems  and when the Board can expect the completed report.
It seems that $36million is a trifling sum. Perhaps the membership would like to pioneer the  way  by contributing to a worthy project  such as building a dedicated bone marrow transplant unit.
Perhaps members might like to see the annual retention fee reduced. When were members informed that they were part of an investment bank.
Council has entered the party market with no discussion about activity and expenditure  which involves risk to the Board’s Finances and may indeed contravene the act which governs the profession
We are notified without consultation, that in this day and age of Zoom meetings  there must be an expensive building to carry out the function of registration, disciplinary hearings and general management functions.
Members of the Board are kindly asked to give due consideration to
Dr. Avinash N. Maharaj.

PROPOSED:  David Strisiver
SECONDED: Rajiv Seereeram

Doctors Ethics & Autonomy Lobby

Welcome to The Doctors Ethics & Autonomy Lobby (DEAL), an advocacy group of medical professionals and citizens lobbying for comprehensive reform of the Medical Board Act. In brief, the inherent construction of the Medical Board Act, as established in 1961,regards the combined ethics and authority of its physician members as the engine of clinical governance in Trinidad and Tobago. Physicians, sworn to their Hippocratic oath, seasoned in practice and beholden to patients are best equipped to oversee and regulate the ethical standards and practices within their own field. However, it has become increasingly clear that the ethical governance of medicine is an issue that intimately affects all citizens who must be dealt with openly and honestly and in keeping with the rights of the patient. Health care legislation can only evolve with input from the public. DEAL is advocating for legislative reform which will:

1.Protect the status and authority of the Members of the Medical Board in the governance of the profession; We reject the propose change in terminology from “Member” to “Registrant”.

2.Enhance the independence and autonomy of the Medical Board to safeguard against political influence and interference.

3.Codify Fiduciary Accountability Clauses to mandate financial transparency and good corporate governance within the Council.

4.Include a comprehensive Bioethics Section to protect patient rights including codes of ethical conduct which safeguard physicians.

5.Create a pathway for rational and reasonable CME policy that facilitates education of physicians that can be fairly and transparently administered. 

We encourage you to consider the merits of our proposed reforms and invite your input and support.

Definitions: 

Medical Board: the Statutory Body consisting of all Physicians registered to practice Medicine and Surgery in Trinidad and Tobago 

Medical Council: The body elected/appointed by the Board to carry out the administrative functions of the Board

Bioethics: The embodiment of ethical principles in medical practice, healthcare, and research, which emphasize the minimization of risk, the provision of the best standard of care, and the protection of patients' rights, autonomy, and well-being, while promoting the integrity of the medical profession and the advancement of medical knowledge through ethical means;

Continuing Medical Education (CME): CME consists of educational activities which serve to maintain, develop, or increase the knowledge, skills, and professional performance and relationships that a physician uses to provide services for patients, the public, or the profession. 

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