Request for certificate of registration

Patients are entitled to information about their health and the care they are receiving. This statement outlines what we expect of doctors when helping patients to make an informed decision about their care and treatment.

Resource constraints are a reality in health care. For doctors, this often means prioritising based on clinical need and waiting lists. This statement guides doctors working in a resource-constrained environment by setting out ethical principles and practical advice.

All doctors have a duty to act on their concerns about another doctor, but doctors in management roles have an extra responsibility to ensure that there are appropriate reporting procedures in place, and these procedures are known to staff who may need to use them. This statement provides guidance for doctors who are concerned about a medical colleague's conduct, performance, competence or health, and provides suggestions on what to do and who to approach.

This document outlines the adjustments to our existing fees and disciplinary levy effective 1 July 2021, made using an activity-based costing methodology, and following an extensive review process.

This consultation document is seeking stakeholder feedback on the Medical Council of New Zealand’s (Council) proposal to gazette an increase to the practising certificate (PC) fee and disciplinary levy, to be effective from 1 September 2020.

We are seeking stakeholder feedback on the Medical Council of New Zealand’s (Council) proposal to gazette changes to its existing fees and disciplinary levy, to be effective from 1 July 2021.

We are seeking stakeholder feedback on the Medical Council of New Zealand’s (Council) proposal to gazette changes to its existing fees and disciplinary levy, to be effective from 1 July 2022.

This document outlines Council's decision around the Practising Certificate Fee and Disciplinary Levy for 2020/2021 and the reasons for this decision.

Request for confirmation of internship, NZREX pass, or general registration.

This consultation sets out two proposals for registration of International Medical Graduates (IMGs) in the Provisional General scope of practice in Aotearoa New Zealand based on an applicant having passed Part 1 and Part 2 of the United Kingdom (UK) Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board (PLAB) test.

Manatū Hauora - The Ministry of Health (the Ministry) is proposing that the Physician Associate (PA) profession be regulated under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance (HPCA) Act 2003. This document outlines the details of this proposal.

This document is a copy of all written submissions we received when we consulted on our discussion document around strengthening recertification for vocationally-registered doctors. Feedback is published according to submitters preference for anonymity.

In 2019, Council released strengthened Recertification requirements for vocationally-registered doctors practising in New Zealand. Council is now reviewing its accreditation standards for providers of vocational recertification programmes to ensure these align with the new recertification requirements.

This guide outlines why doctors may have conditions on their practice, how to find out if a doctor has conditions, and what some of the different types of conditions mean for you as a patient.

Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | the Medical Council of New Zealand (the Council) is considering making changes to the advanced life support (ACLS) requirement for interns in the Provisional General scope of practice (postgraduate year 1, or PGY1) interns.

Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | the Medical Council of New Zealand (the Council) considers it important that all interns have the knowledge and skills to manage and supervise resuscitation events and therefore we have a longstanding requirement that interns hold New Zealand Resuscitation Council (NZRC) CORE Advanced certification.

We are reviewing our statement on Advertising. This draft statement highlights several ethical issues that arise with advertising such as the potential for overtreatment, and the power and knowledge imbalance between a doctor and a patient.

You can use this document to provide feedback on the updated version of our statement Disclosure of harm following an adverse event

We are proposing two key changes to the comparable health system pathway to registration in the Provisional General scope of practice. We welcome your feedback about these proposed changes before we make any decisions.

Council is proposing to extend the provisional vocational assessment period from 18 to 24 months. This will enable a specific cohort of specialist IMGs who may not otherwise meet the standard, to gain provisional vocational registration and complete discrete training to address identified
deficiencies in their qualifications, training and experience.

Draft document for consultation. In this document we advise doctors on how they can support the achievement of best health outcomes for Māori. We also provide guidance for healthcare organisations on how to support Māori health equity.

This form further outlines the additional information that will be required by the ACEM so it can provide us with advice on your application for vocational registration in emergency medicine.

Earlier this year we sought feedback on the draft statement on Treating yourself and those close to you. A wide range of submissions was received from key stakeholders across the profession and some common themes emerged. Council has revised this statement taking into account your feedback.

More information about cultural safety requirements is in this section of the full consultation paper linked here.

This pamphlet explains the role of a Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) and what to expect if you are referred to a PCC.

There is a potential for health-related commercial organisations to influence how doctors practise and the clinical decisions they make. We are reviewing our statement on doctors and health-related commercial organisations and would value your feedback.

This pamphlet explains the role of a Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) and what to expect if your notification about a doctor is referred to a PCC.

More information about what PAs can do their - scopes of practice is in this section of the full consultation paper linked here.

In May 2019 Council consulted with stakeholders on a revised statement and resource on cultural competence, cultural safety and achieving best health outcomes for Māori. The feedback can be found here. The final documents were completed in October 2019.

More information about how PAs will be supervised proposed framework is in this section of the full consultation paper linked here.

Doctors are sometimes asked by a third party (such as an insurance company or ACC) to conduct medical assessments of patients. This statement explains the role of the assessing doctor and the standard of care expected of them within an assessing relationship.

We are consulting with stakeholders on the proposed introduction of a fee for the accreditation of New Zealand-based vocational training and recertification providers.

More information about deciding the right title for PA scopes of practice is in this section of the full consultation paper linked here.

More information about qualifications and registration pathways proposed is in this section of the full consultation paper linked here.

Council's submission to Manatū Hauora | Ministry of Health on their consultation around the regulation of physician associates under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003.

This draft statement sets out legal and ethical considerations as a doctor when responding to a medical emergency. It also discusses a number of factors you should consider when you attend to a medical emergency, whether that emergency is within a healthcare facility, or in a non-clinical setting, such as in the community.

This draft statement outlines what is expected of doctors when harm to patients occurs as a direct result of medical care. See the consultation section of our website to provide feedback on this draft statement.

We are reviewing our statement on a doctor’s duty to help in a medical emergency and would value your feedback. This statement discusses a number of factors doctors should consider when responding to a medical emergency.

This is an updated draft version of the statement which we're consulting on. Please see the consultation section of our website for more information including how to provide feedback.

Currently, there is no requirement for applicants for this examination to have had any clinical practice experience. This consultation seeks views on the merits of introducing a requirement that individuals applying to sit the NZREX must have had clinical practice experience and if so, then what that should be.

This document covers a number of NZREX-related policies including pass criteria, serious concerns and critical incidents, request for resits, feedback, and recount of results.

Guide on how to use myMCNZ including how to access it, how to update your details, how to request a COPS and how to renew your practising certificate.

We've drafted these standards to align with new recertification requirements. They will be effective from 1 July 2022. Before this time, providers will need to show evidence they are progressing towards implementing these requirements.

This document highlights the revisions we're making around recertification, cultural safety, and health equity to the accreditation standards for NZ training providers of vocational medical training and recertification programmes

Complete this form to confirm you are enrolled and actively participating in an approved recertification programme.

This document outlines the various options available to the Notifications Triage Team (NTT) and Council when considering a notification about a doctor.

This policy outlines the process we follow when requiring that a doctor has an approved chaperone present during their consultations.

Letter from Mr Andrew Connolly to the Resident Doctors Association (RDA) and the 20 District Health Boards regarding continued industrial action.

Form to confirm that the doctor is enrolled and actively participating in Inpractice, the recertification programme for doctors registered in the General scope of practice.

This fact sheet is intended to provide information to those people who meet with a Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) as part of its investigation.

This sheet provides information on how Professional Conduct Committees (PCCs) request information, what powers they must obtain information, what they do with information they receive, and answers some frequently asked questions.

Under the HPCAA, doctors can have their competence or performance reviewed at any time, or in response to concerns about their practice. This guide outlines what you can expect if you are undergoing a performance assessment

This report presents the results of our 2024 workforce survey. Key findings include the continuing increase in the proportion of Māori and female doctors in the workforce, as well as a 3.4 percent increase in the overall size of the workforce.

A Review of Prevocational Training Requirements for Doctors in New Zealand: Stage 2 - A second consultation paper on the proposed changes to prevocational training

You must agree to these rules before you can take the examination. If you break these rules you will fail the examination and there may be consequences for any future application for registration.

New Zealand and Australian graduates: This checklist will help you to confirm your eligibility for registration, tell you what documents you need to provide, and will tell you what documents you need to have verified at source by EPIC.

A community-based attachment is an educational experience in an accredited clinical attachment in a community-focused service in which the intern is engaged in caring for the patient and managing their illness in the context of their family and community.

Australasian colleges are required to meet the Aotearoa New Zealand specific standards. The Aotearoa NZ specific standards relate to recertification / continuing professional development.

Doctors are often asked to sign certificates for a wide range of purposes, such as confirming sickness, impairment or death. This statement outlines factors to consider, and the standards that doctors must follow, when issuing a medical certificate.

Where a doctor wishes to resume practice in New Zealand, but has not held a New Zealand practising certificate within the last 3 years, the doctor does not have an automatic entitlement to a practising certificate. Council must consider such applications on a case by case basis.

If you're applying for registration in the vocational scope and did your postgraduate training outside of New Zealand and Australia, this policy outlines the rules that will apply when we consider your application.

PGY1 and PGY2 interns can only practise medicine in accredited clinical attachments. This document outlines the standards clinical attachments must meet to be accredited. These standards should be considered alongside the accreditation standards for training providers.

As the regulator of the medical profession, the Medical Council of New Zealand (the Council) plays a key role to ensure public safety and to assure and maintain public trust and confidence in the profession; including that doctors continue to maintain high standards of competence.

This guidance explains what doctors should consider when using artificial intelligence (AI) in patient care. Because AI is increasingly being used in medical practice, it is essential that doctors do so ethically and responsibly, to ensure patient safety and the privacy of health information.

Council has not issued standards specific to practice within the purpose of the End of Life Choice Act 2019 (EOLCA). Council considers that the provision of health services under the EOLCA falls within the wider practice of medicine, to which Council’s statements are directed. This document sets out existing Council statements alongside the relevant sections of the EOLCA.

Each year CPMEC recognises clinical educators across Australia and New Zealand who have made valuable contributions to prevocational medical education and training. PGY1 and PGY2 doctors are eligible to nominate a clinical educator for this award.

This statement outlines Council's expectations of doctors who perform cosmetic procedures. These include standards relating to training, skill and expertise, advertising and obtaining consent from the patient.

In the May 2016 issue of Medical Council News we looked at doctors providing care to themselves and those close to them, informed consent, and guidance from the Pharmacy Council on effective prescription writing for safe collaborative patient management.

In this issue of Medical Council News we acknowledge the contribution and mana of Mr Andrew Connolly, our Chair and leader over the last five years. We also highlight our two new statements on professional and sexual boundaries in the doctor-patient relationship and the Ministry shares guidance around new laws relating to medicinal cannabis.

In the November 2015 edition of Medical Council News we looked at stimulating debate amongst health organisations about the urgent need to address Māori health inequity, concerns around processing laboratory results, retrospective changes to patient records and why British doctors move to New Zealand.

These standards will come into effect on 1 July 2022. The standards outline the standards vocational training providers need to meet in order to be accredited to provide vocational medical training and recertification programmes. We have made revisions to update recertification, cultural safety, health equity and specialist assessment of IMG content.

This statement acknowledges that health inequities and inequalities continue to exist for Māori, and that there are disparities in the delivery of health care to Māori. It encourages all health organisations to examine their partnership with Māori through genuine engagement, representation and participation.

Each year CPMEC recognises junior doctors across Australia and New Zealand who have made valuable contributions to prevocational medical education and training. Prevocational Education Supervisors, Clinical Directors of Training and CMOs are eligible to nominate a junior doctor for this award.

During the course of a medical career, a doctor may be involved in management or have a leadership role. This statement outlines the standards doctors are expected to meet when they take on such roles. While doctors in a leadership role have a duty to their workplace and the wider community, their first consideration must always be the interests and safety of patients.

As a doctor, you have an obligation to be respectful and professional as your behaviour may affect how a health team functions, how care is delivered to patients, and the public’s trust and confidence in the medical profession. If you have concerns about the conduct, competence or safety of a doctor’s practice, you should notify the Medical Council.

Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) refers to therapies and treatments that are not commonly accepted in conventional medical practice, but are sometimes used alongside or instead of conventional medical treatments. This statement guides doctors in situations where their patients are using CAM, and outlines what we expect when doctors practise CAM.

Training and/or Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme providers can be required
to report on an annual or specified basis to Council as a condition of their accreditation. This guide
provides an outline of the expected structure of an annual- or progress report. This guide applies to the current standards that are in effect until 30 June 2020.

Telehealth is the use of digital technology to deliver health services where participants may be separated by distance and/or time. This statement outlines our expectation of doctors who practise telehealth in New Zealand and overseas, and includes guidance on registration, conducting physical examinations and prescribing.