Election of Federal AMA Office Bearers 2005-06
Elections were held this morning at the AMA National Conference in Darwin for the positions of Vice President, Chairman of Council, and Treasurer of the Federal AMA.
Victorian GP and former Vice President, Dr Mukesh Haikerwal, was the only nomination for President when nominations closed on 13 May. He officially takes over as Federal AMA President from today.
Dr Haikerwal, who runs a busy general practice in Melbourne's western suburbs, has been on the AMA Federal Council since 1999, served as Vice President for the past two years, and is a former President of AMA Victoria.
Following this morning's elections, the new Vice President is Dr Choong-Siew Yong from NSW.
Dr Yong is a psychiatrist who works as a staff specialist in child and adolescent psychiatry at Sydney West Mental Health Service and as a visiting medical officer at the North Coast Area Health Service and South West Sydney Area Health Service.
A former AMA NSW President, Dr Yong has been on the Federal AMA Executive Council since 2002 and has most recently been Chair of the Public Health Committee and the Youth Health Committee.
Queensland's Dr Dana Wainwright has been returned as Chairman of AMA Federal Council, a position she has held since 2003.
Dr Wainwright is in private specialist practice and is Visiting Senior Specialist at the Royal Brisbane Hospital in Internal Medicine. She is a former President of AMA Queensland and is heavily involved in teaching and training medical students.
The new Treasurer is Western Australia's Dr Rosanna Capolingua. A GP who runs her own practice in Perth, Dr Capolingua was the first woman President of AMA WA and has been on Federal Council since 1998.
She is Chair of the Ethics and Medico-Legal Committee and Deputy-Chair of the Economics and Workforce Committee.
At the first meeting of the new AMA Federal Council following the Conference, Dr Chris Cain from South Australia and Dr Andrew Pesce from New South Wales were the only two nominations for the vacant Executive Council positions and were duly appointed.
Dr Cain is a spinal surgeon in Adelaide and is the current President of AMA SA. Dr Pesce is a Sydney obstetrician and gynaecologist and is the Chair of the Federal AMA's Medical Professional Indemnity Task Force.
28 May 2005
CONTACT: Judith Tokley (02) 6270 5471 / (0408) 824 306