The Medical Council of New Zealand (the Council) wants to ensure that recertification programmes for all doctors are robust, help assure the public that the doctor is competent and fit to practise, and improve the current high standards of practice of doctors in New Zealand. 

The primary purpose of RPR is to help maintain and improve standards of the profession. RPR is a quality improvement process. RPR may also assist in the identification of poor performance which may adversely affect patient care. The goal of RPR is to help individual doctors identify areas where aspects of their performance could be improved, benefiting not only their own professional development but also the quality of care that their patients receive.