By now you will all be aware of the fee increase for membership of the Society of Radiographers implemented in October. This is always a difficult decision for the UK Council and personally I always try to balance my desires for the membership with my responsibilities as a company director.
These are uncertain times with the emergence of coronavirus. As senior representatives of the membership we never want to place members under hardship by imposing fee increases but we also want to ensure that the SoR remains a strong, viable organisation that can continue to advocate for radiographers and represent them well beyond this extraordinary centenary year.
It is the prime duty of a company director to ‘act in the interest of the company'. This may seem counterintuitive as a member of the same organisation, imposing a fee increase upon yourself and your peers in difficult times.
However, ‘acting in the interest of the company’ is in turn acting in the interests of members by ensuring financial security for the organisation for the future. Investing in the future of SoR is an investment in the profession.
There is a lot of work to be done as we continue to deal with Covid-19. When we move into the recovery phase, we know diagnostic imaging and radiotherapy services will likely be stretched further than ever before. This will require the influential input of a sufficiently funded trade union and professional body to ensure radiographers are working in a safe environment and properly remunerated for doing so.
SoR are at the forefront of representing members during the pandemic, including constantly writing and revising guidance which was posted on our specially designed Covid-19 micro-site.
The staff also revised the way they work with great efficiency and adapted to home-based working with a quick turnaround to ensure that normal service was provided for members at a time of great need. Meanwhile, in the background, the day-to-day work continued unhampered.
All such things need to be properly financed. As a strategic manager it is imperative to manage risk, whether the risk be foreseen or not. Covid-19 would have been very difficult to foresee or to anticipate the impact it would have on business, society and the healthcare system.
The SoR staff and UK Council adapted to this unprecedented situation to ensure that the organisation continued to grow its influence to represent the interests of its membership. With the correct strategic direction and financial management, your trade union and professional body will continue to be here whenever you need it.
However, the Society is built and run by its membership, so we want to hear from you. Are you getting bang for your buck? Do you feel sufficiently represented? What can we be doing better? The membership steers the direction of this organisation and always will, so have your say and get in touch.
Please email your comments via: [email protected]