Our governance
The chairman of Advisory Group on Military and Emergency Response Medicine (AGMERM) reports to ministers through the executive officer. The current chairman is Professor Peter G Blain CBE.
The Surgeon General performs the executive officer role and is the primary link between the committee chairman and government departments.
The chairman, executive officer and the secretary make up an executive sub-committee, which addresses routine matters in advance of the main committee meeting. Normally the secretary and chairman will execute this on behalf of the members but may co-opt members as required.
Members will be drawn mainly from the medical, academic and public sectors. The following core specialties are required:
- medico-legal including bioethics
- infectious diseases
- toxicology
- radiation medicine
- pharmacovigilence
- preventative medicine
- psychiatry
- emergency medicine
- critical care
- diagnostics and imaging
- primary care
- secondary care
Members should be proactive with the remit to raise issues or highlight areas of concern to the committee.
All AGMERM tasking requests are to be made through the executive officer to the chairman, normally processed by the HQ Surgeon General secretariat, based between Lichfield and London.
Only independent members can give advice under the name of AGMERM, whether in writing or orally. Ministry of Defence (MOD) or ex-officio members are not permitted to represent the advice of AGMERM.