Taube and Mozgis to compete for presidency of Latvian Medical Association
Registration has closed for the Latvian Medical Association (LĀB) presidential election, with two candidates now in the running. The vote is set for the October 1 general meeting.
Registration of candidates for the presidency of the Latvian Medical Association (LĀB) closed on Friday, September 18. According to LĀB communications project manager Mareta Lāce, who informed Delfi, two candidates have been put forward: professor Māris Taube and Dr. med. Dzintars Mozgis.
The candidates
Māris Taube is a psychiatrist who heads the Latvian Psychiatric Association, works as a professor at Riga Stradiņš University, and leads the "Veldre" clinic at the National Centre for Mental Health. He already serves on the LĀB board. His stated priorities include strengthening evidence-based medicine, raising the authority of the association and the prestige of the medical profession, and defending doctors' professional interests and a safe working environment.
Dzintars Mozgis is deputy director for public health and prevention at the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, teaches at Riga Stradiņš University, and chairs the Latvian Association of Healthcare Management Specialists. His vision for LĀB emphasizes strengthening its role as an umbrella organization for doctors and dentists, formulating shared professional priorities, and becoming an authoritative partner in shaping health policy, while defending professional independence and patient-oriented development of healthcare.
How the vote will proceed
Under LĀB rules, a presidential candidate could be nominated with a petition signed by at least 50 association members, submitted to the board no later than two weeks before the general meeting. The election will take place at the general meeting on October 1 at LĀB's premises on Skolas Street in Riga. Should that meeting lack a quorum, a repeat meeting is scheduled for November 3 at the Kipsala exhibition centre.
Besides the presidential vote, the meeting's agenda includes elections for vice-presidents, the board, the audit commission, and the certification, ethics, education and disciplinary bodies, along with reports on the association's prior activities.
