During World War II, the BMA House had been the focal spot at which
doctors of all the allied nations congregated from time to time
to discuss problems of medical practice and peacetime and to compare
the conditions of medical service and medical education in their
respective countries. In July, 1945 an informal conference of doctors
from several countries convened in London to initiate plans for
an international medical organization to replace l'Association Professionnelle
Internationale des Médecins", which having been organized
in 1926 and having reached a maximum membership of 23 countries,
had suspended operations with the advent of World War II. Accordingly,
a second conference was held in London in September 1946. Medical
associations of 31 countries were invited and 29 of them sent representatives.
An Organizing Committee was appointed and directed to draft a Constitution,
and plan for the First General Assembly. This Conference decided
that the name of the new organization should be "The World
Medical Association" and that it should have broader activities
and wider membership than the former l'Association Professionnelle
Internationale des Médecins. APIM officers attending the
Conference agreed to dissolve the APIM in favor of the WMA, and
generously turned over its remaining funds to the WMA.
Those named to the Organizing Committee were:
- Dr F. de Court, France
- Dr Pierre Glorieux, Belgium
- Dr Dag Knutson, Sweden
- Mr Otto Leuch, Switzerland
- Dr John A. Pridham, Great Britain
- Dr T. Clarence Routley, Canada
- Prof. I. Shawki Bey, Egypt
- Dr Lorenzo Garcia Tornel, Spain
- Dr A. Zahor, Czechoslovakia
The Conference further agreed that a provisional joint Secretariat
should be established in London and Paris. Dr Charles Hill, Secretary
of the BMA, was designated as the English Secretary, and Dr Paul
Cibrie, Secretary of La Confédération des Syndicats
Médicaux Français, as the French Secretary. Dr Otto
Leuch was appointed as temporary Treasurer.
The second meeting of the Organizing Committee was held in Paris
in November 1946. Further progress was made on the Constitution
and Bylaws and it was decided to invite the American Medical Association
to name one of its members to serve on the Organizing Committee.
Dr Louis H. Bauer - the first Secretary General of the WMA - was
named by the AMA to serve on the Committee, and Dr Elmer L. Anderson
to serve a alternate.
The final draft of the Constitution and Bylaws was approved at
the third meeting of the Organizing Committee held in London,
April 1947, and plans were made to hold the First General Assembly
in Paris, September 1947. The draft set dues at 20 Swiss centimes
per member of the national medical association with a minimum
subscription of 1,000 SFrs, and a maximum of 10,000.
The fourth and final meeting of the Organizing Committee was
held in Paris 1946 the day before the convening of the General
Assembly (September 18, 1947). The proposed Constitution and Bylaws
was adopted on the first Assembly day with minor amendments. The
meeting became the First General Assembly of the WMA, and 27 national
medical associations represented became the founder member associations.
These associations were:
- Federal Council of the BMA in Australia
- Osterreichische Arztekammer (Austria)
- Fédération Médicale Belge
- Canadian Medical Association
- Chinese Medical Association (dropped in 1952)
- Ustredni Jednota Ceskych Lekaru (ceased to exist in 1948)
- Den Almindelige Danske Laegeforening (Denmark)
- Medical Association of Eire (changed to Irish Medical Association)
- La Confédération des Syndicats Médicaux
Français
- British Medical Association
- Association Médicale Panhellenique (Greece)
- Laeknafelga Islands (Iceland)
- Indian Medical Association
- Palestine Jewish Medical Association (later changed to Israel
Medical Association in 1949)
- Federazione Nazionale degli Ordini dei Medici d'Italia
- Syndicats des Médecins du Grand Duché de Luxembourg
- Koninklijke Nederlandsche Maatschappij tot Bevordering der Geneeskunst
(Netherlands)
- Den Norske Laegeforening (Norway)
- Palestine Arab Medical Association (ceased to exist in 1949)
- Naczelna Izby Lekarska (dropped in 1949)
- Medical Association of South Africa
- Colegio Oficial de Médicos de Espana
- Sveriges Lakarforbund (Sweden)
- Fédération des Médecins Suisses
- Turkish Medical Chamber (later replaced by the Union of Turkish
Physicians)
- American Medical Association
Prof. Dr Eugène Marquis, France, was elected as the first
President of WMA, Dr Jar. Stucklik, Czechoslovakia, was elected
President-Elect, Dr Otto Leuch, Switzerland, was elected Treasurer,
and Dr Charles Hill, UK, was elected as temporary Honorary Secretary.
The first Council, composed of 10 members, was elected, and the
World Medical Association was fully launched.
The Constitution, as adopted, provided, among other things, for
membership of national medical associations fully representative
of the medical profession in their countries or territories, but
only one member association from each country. The General Assembly
was vested with the general control of the policies and the affairs
of the association, and was to meet annually in a different country.
The executive body, the Council, was directed to administer the
affairs of the association and report annually to the Assembly.
The Council to consist of three elected officers, and ten members
elected by the Assembly.
English, French and Spanish were declared the official languages
of the association, and a bulletin or journal was to be published
and known as the official organ of the WMA.
In order to facilitate financial support from its member associations
during a period when monetary exchange was restricted by many
national governments, Switzerland and the USA were considered
the most advantageous locations for the Headquarters Secretariat
of the new association. In 1948, the executive board, known as
the Council, established the Secretariat of the WMA in New York
City in order to provide close liaison with the United Nations
and its various agencies. Dr Louis H. Bauer was appointed as Secretary
General. The WMA Secretariat remained in New York City until 1974
when for reasons of economy, and in order to operate within the
vicinity of Geneva-based international organizations (WHO, ILO,
ICN, ISSA, etc.) it was transferred to its present location in
Ferney-Voltaire, France.
In July 1964 the WMA was incorporated as a non-profit educational
and scientific organization under the laws of the State of New
York, USA. This Incorporation established the legal and financial
status of the WMA in the USA, with elected members of Council
to serve as the Association's Board of Directors. It also made
possible to obtain a tax-free status recognition on funds donated
to the WMA and for donors of financial contributions. WMA's Incorporation
was adopted at the XIXth World Medical Assembly held in London,
UK, 1965.
The annual meeting of delegates was changed in 1962 to "World
Medical Assembly" following revision of the Constitution
and Bylaws at the XVIth General Assembly.
WMA Headquarters since foundation to 1974: NEW YORK CITY,
USA
From 1975 to present: FERNEY-VOLTAIRE, FRANCE
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