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The Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act (HPCA)

The Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act (HPCA)came into force on18 September 2004.

The HPCA Act governs all registered health professionals in New Zealand. The purpose of the Act is to "to protect the health and safety of members of public by providing for mechanisms to ensure that health professionals are competent and fit to practise their professions."

The HPCA Act is divided into seven parts and the key principles are outlined below:

Part 1: Preliminary and Key Provisions

  • unqualified persons must not claim to be a health practitioner

  • health practitioners must not practise outside their scope of practice

  • certain activities restricted to particular health professionals

Part 2: Registration of, and Practising Certificates for, Health Practitioners

  • prescribed scopes of practice, qualifications, and experience

  • registration of practitioners and authorisations of scopes of practice

  • practising certificates

Part 3: Competence, Fitness to Practice and Quality Assurance

  • notification of practice below required standard of competence
  • competence programmes and recertification programmes
  • inability to perform required functions
  • quality assurance activities

Part 4: Complaints and Discipline
  • referral of complaints and interim suspensions
  • Professional conduct committees
  • Health Practitioners Discipline Tribunal
  • procedure and decisions of Tribunal, funding of Tribunal and recovery of costs and fines

Part 5: Appeals


Part 6: Structures and Administration

  • continuation and establishment of authorities
  • status, functions and membership of authorities
  • Registrars

Part 7: Miscellaneous Provisions, Consequential Amendments and Repeals, and Transitional Provisions

The HPCA Act recently underwent operational review in 2009. The Ministry of Health is responsible for administrating the Act. A summary of the review and recommendations can be viewed here.

A copy of the Act may be purchased from Bennetts Government Bookshop or Whitcoulls.
An electronic version of the Act is available by clicking here. You will need to go to Acts and choose Browse to view the HPCA Act.