Search
324 results matching “can you find diamonds in a canyon”
-
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
-
Whether you're Māori or non-Māori, you are welcome to visit a Māori health provider. What makes their care different from a non-Māori health provider is the kaupapa (principle) and delivery framework, which is distinctively Māori.
-
Council is pleased to publish its revised statement on Treating yourself and those close to you (previously Providing care to yourself and those close to you), in effect from 14 October 2024.
-
This page contains all of Council's publications and can be filtered by publication type to help you find what you're looking for.
-
Our principal function is to protect you by ensuring that doctors and physician associates are competent and fit to practise. We do this by setting standards of clinical and cultural competence and ethical conduct.
-
If you have concerns about a registered doctor or a physician associate, you can refer the matter to the Council.
-
You can apply for registration through this pathway if you have a primary medical degree from the UK or Ireland and have completed your internship within the UK or Ireland.
-
Find out how to keep us up to date with changes to your information including your name, employment, and addresses.
-
You can apply for registration through this pathway if you hold a qualification accredited for licensure in Canada for registration as a physician associate.
-
We may sometimes use terms you won't be familiar with. Find out here what they mean.
-
You can apply for registration through this pathway if you hold a qualification accredited for licensure in the United States of America for registration as a physician associate.
-
If you are thinking about practising medicine in New Zealand, there are many things to consider. This page provides an introduction to medical registration, the healthcare system, getting a job and settling in the country.
-
You can apply for registration through this pathway if you have recent experience in a comparable health system.
-
How you apply for a practising certificate will depend on whether or not you are already registered in New Zealand, if you have worked in New Zealand before, and how long it has been since you last practised. If you already hold a practising certificate, please see our page on renewing your practising certificate instead.
-
If you want to work as a specialist in New Zealand, hold the approved New Zealand/Australasian postgraduate qualification, but do not already hold general registration, you can apply down the VOC2 pathway.
-
You can apply for registration through this pathway if you hold a qualification approved by the General Medical Council (GMC) for registration as a physician associate in the United Kingdom.
-
This page outlines the registration process for physician associates including information on what you need to provide, what you can expect and how long it will take.
-
To practise in New Zealand, you must first gain registration from us. This ensures you are competent and fit to practise.
-
Vocational registration is a form of permanent, specialist registration which allows you to work independently in New Zealand.
-
Whenever you use a health or disability service in New Zealand, you are protected by the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights (Code of Rights). The Code of Rights applies to both public and private facilities, and to both paid and unpaid services. It gives you as a patient, the right to be treated with respect, receive appropriate care, have proper communication, and be fully informed so you can make an informed choice.
-
We want to make sure the information that we provide on our website about making a notification is clear and easy to use. If you have recently looked at our website to find out how to raise a concern about a doctor, we welcome your feedback.
-
You can apply for registration through this pathway if you have an overseas specialist qualification on our approved list, and have a job offer to work in New Zealand for 12 months or less.
-
You can apply via this pathway if you have passed Part 1 and Part 2 of the Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board (PLAB) test administered by the General Medical Council (GMC), United Kingdom (UK); completed 12-months of satisfactory practice in the UK; and hold full general registration with the GMC.
-
In this section you will find information about medical education and training at all levels in Aotearoa New Zealand.
-
You can apply to access the full medical register, but before you apply make sure you know what information the register holds. Whether your application is approved or not depends on what you want to do with the information.
-
You can download copies of your current and expired practising certificates by logging into your myMCNZ account.
-
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.
-
Torohia – Medical Training Survey for New Zealand – is here! Doctors in training voices matter. Let's make sure they're heard. Visit the Torohia website to find out more and download the promo kit to help spread the word! https://www.torohia.org.nz/
-
You can apply for registration via this pathway if, within the last five years, you have passed either the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical); or Part 1 and Part 2 of the Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board (PLAB) test.
-
You can apply for this pathway if you have passed the Australian Medical Council examinations and are registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).
-
If you're not working away from New Zealand but are just taking a break from medical practice, this page outlines what you need to do.
-
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.
-
Every doctor in New Zealand must be registered to practise medicine. If you are not eligible for registration under any other pathway, you must sit and pass the NZREX Clinical, our registration examination.
-
This page covers where you can get advice and support if you're thinking about making a notification.
-
In some circumstances you can be restored to the medical register if your registration has been cancelled. See this page to check whether you are eligible for restoration to the register, and how to apply.
-
Tell us who you are so we can better direct your enquiry
-
Anaesthesia is the provision of anaesthetics, peri-operative care, intensive care and pain management to patients and can include the provision of resuscitation, retrieval/transportation (inter and intra hospital) and hyperbaric medicine to patients.
-
To apply for registration as a medical practitioner in New Zealand, or to sit the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical), you must have a recognised primary medical qualification from a university medical school listed on the World Directory of Medical Schools.
-
In this section you will find all of Council's published documents including annual reports, newsletters, strategic plans, workforce reports, statements and guidelines, and policies.
-
You can use this document to provide feedback on the updated version of our statement Disclosure of harm following an adverse event
-
If you trained and qualified as a specialist outside of New Zealand and Australia and wish to work in New Zealand as a specialist you can apply based on overseas training and qualifications and we will assess your case on its merits.
-
If a doctor or physician associate has an issue with their own health, wherever possible we try to help them to remain in practice while it is being resolved. That said, our primary objective is to protect the health and safety of the public - which may mean that the doctor or physician associate will be unable to practise safely, or will be limited in what they can do, until they are well enough to fully resume practice.
-
Psychiatry involves the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of patients with psychological, emotional, or cognitive problems resulting from psychiatric disorders, physical disorders or any other cause.
-
VOC1 (specialist) registration is for doctors who hold an approved New Zealand / Australasian postgraduate qualification and already hold registration in the General scope of practice.
-
You cannot work outside the requirements of your scope of practice and any requirements set by Council specific to you. These are shown on your practising certificate. If you are registered within a provisional general, provisional vocational or a special purpose scope of practice, you need our approval of any change to your employment, supervision, position or location.
Once we've received and approved your variation application we will issue you a new practising certificate. -
In some circumstances you can be restored to the medical register if your registration has been cancelled. This page outlines how to apply to be restored to the register.
-
If you have concerns about the care you received, or about a doctor or physician associate's behaviour or professionalism, you can notify either the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC) or the Medical Council of New Zealand (Council). We work closely together, but our roles are different.
-
Urgent care medicine (formerly known as accident and medical practice) is the primary care of patients on an after-hours or non-appointment basis, where continuing medical care is not provided.
-
Council is proud to have been one of the seven responsible authorities (RAs) that worked together to develop the Principles for Quality and Safe Prescribing Practice. Development of the Principles was a result of collaboration and partnership among RAs.
-
This policy outlines the requirements you must meet before you can be registered in the General scope of practice.This policy should be read alongside Council's Policy on registration in New Zealand.
-
You can use this form to ask us a question or raise concerns about a health practitioner (doctor or physician associate).
-
If you wish to practise medicine in New Zealand you must first gain registration from us. To do this, you must show us that you are qualified, competent and fit for registration.
We register more than 1500 new doctors each year and there are over 16,000 registered doctors practising in New Zealand. More than 40 percent have trained overseas, coming from more than 100 countries.
Use the links below to find out about getting registered to practise here. We recommend you start with ‘how to register’ for an overview. -
Collegial relationships are a component of recertification for general registrants, doctors working outside of their vocational scope of practice, and in select cases doctors limited to non-clinical practice.
-
This pathway is for physician associates who have experience practising clinically in New Zealand.
-
If you are planning on leaving New Zealand to practise in another country, its medical regulator may ask you for a certificate of professional status (COPS) from us. Your registration is not affected by your decision to practise overseas but you must ensure that we hold current contact details for you.
-
Plastic and reconstructive surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients requiring the restoration, correction or improvement in the shape and appearance of the body structures that are defective or damaged at birth or by injury, disease, growth or development. It includes all aspects of cosmetic surgery.
-
If you hold an approved postgraduate medical qualification from the UK, Ireland or Australia and intend to work as a specialist in Aotearoa New Zealand in an approved area of medicine, you can apply via the VOC4 fast-track pathway.
-
Pathology involves the assessment and diagnosis of patients with diseases. Includes anatomical pathology (including histopathology), chemical pathology, forensic pathology, general pathology (a mix of anatomical and clinical pathology), genetic pathology, haematology, immunopathology, and microbiology (including virology).
-
Physician associates are trained health professionals who work under the supervision of adoctor to provide healthcare to patients.
-
The Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal (The Tribunal) has asked us to publish a summary of its recent decisions. You can access the full decision on their website at the links provided.
-
This dashboard page contains information around registered doctors, those who are on the register and hold a current practising certificate. You can also view the same data for past quarters.
-
Public health medicine is the epidemiological analysis of medicine concerned with the health and care of populations and population groups. It involves the assessment of health and health care needs, the development of policy and strategy, the promotion of health, the control and prevention of disease, and the organisation of services.
-
Council's strategic plan sets out our key strategic goals, the outcomes that flow down from our goals, and how we can achieve these outcomes.
-
Supervision is a registration requirement for all doctors registered in a provisional general, provisional vocational or special purpose scope of practice. Supervision supports a doctor’s practice and enables their performance to be assessed while they become familiar with the New Zealand health system and the expected standard of medical practice.
-
Sexual health medicine is concerned with sexual relations, including freedom from sexually transmissible infections (STIs), unplanned pregnancy, coercion and physical and psychological sexual discomfort. Its practice encompasses a wide range of factors that contribute to STIs, sexual assault, sexual dysfunction and fertility.
-
The Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 requires us to define the areas of medicine and specialties (known as ‘scopes of practice’) that make up the practice of medicine in Aotearoa New Zealand. You'll find these scopes of practice listed here. For a more detailed explanation of each, please select the scope of practice that interests you.
-
Palliative medicine is the medical care that improves the quality of life of patients and their families and whanau facing the problems associated with life-threatening illness. The focus of palliative medicine is the anticipation and relief of suffering of patients by means of early identification, assessment and management of their pain and other physical, psychosocial and spiritual concerns. In particular, it affirms life, regards dying as a normal process and intends to neither hasten nor postpone death.
-
Urology is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of the urinary tracts in males and females, and male genital organs. It also includes the management of trauma to these organs and the management of male sterilisation, infertility and sexual dysfunction.
-
This page contains important information on approved qualifications, the information to include with your application, and other things that may affect your application for registration in a vocational scope.
-
From today, 1 October 2026 physician associates are a regulated health profession in Aotearoa New Zealand.
-
Medical administration is administration or management utilising the medical and clinical knowledge, skill and judgement of a registered medical practitioner, and capable of affecting the health and safety of the public or any person.
This may include administering or managing a hospital or other health service, developing health operational policy, or planning or purchasing health services. Medical administration does not involve diagnosing or treating patients. -
This page outlines your rights responsibilities in relation to your practising certificate, and the possible consequences if you practise without a certificate.
-
You can make a notification directly to the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC). The HDC's role is to promote and protect your rights as set out in the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights (The Code).
-
Clinical genetics is the investigation, diagnosis of and provision of medical advice, assessment and management of patients in relation to inherited genetic and chromosomal disorders and predispositions.
-
Regardless of your scope of practice, the basic process for registration as a doctor or physician associate in New Zealand is as outlined here.
-
The Performance Assessment Committee (PAC) is made up of two medical members and a lay member. The PAC can assess a doctor’s performance at any time.
-
Emergency medicine is a field of practice based on knowledge and skills required for the prevention, diagnosis and management of acute and urgent aspects of illness and injury affecting patients of all age groups with a full spectrum of undifferentiated physical and behavioural disorders.
-
Internal medicine involves the diagnosis and management of patients with complex medical problems which may include internal medicine, cardiology, clinical immunology, clinical pharmacology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, geriatric medicine, haematology, infectious diseases, medical oncology, nephrology, neurology, nuclear medicine, palliative medicine, respiratory medicine and rheumatology.
-
Obstetrics and gynaecology involves the diagnosis and management of patients in the area of reproductive health and diseases, including but not limited to women’s health issues, maternal foetal medicine, gynaecological oncology, reproductive endocrinology and infertility, and urogynaecology, male sexual disorders, post and perinatal issues.
-
Sport and exercise medicine is the medical care of the exercising individual, including the assessment and management of patients with musculoskeletal injuries and medical problems arising from sporting activity. Sport and exercise physicians possess expertise in general medicine, orthopaedics and rehabilitation, plus allied sport sciences including nutrition, biomechanics, exercise physiology and sports psychology.
-
There are 36 areas of medicine, or 'scopes of practice', within which you can be registered and work as a specialist in New Zealand. This page defines each scope, and details the structure of the New Zealand or Australasian training programme.
-
All doctors and physician associates coming to New Zealand to practise for the first time must attend a registration meeting and be able to produce the information we have asked for.
-
Council is seeking feedback on a proposed change to its processes. Specifically, in relation to advice obtained from medical colleges regarding an international medical graduate’s (IMG) application for registration in a provisional vocational scope of practice.
-
You can request to withdraw from a particular sitting of the NZREX Clinical, or request to transfer to another sitting. This policy sets out the process for applicants to transfer or withdraw from the NZREX Clinical and the associated fee or refund for each process.
-
Intensive care medicine involves the diagnosis and treatment of patients with acute, severe and life-threatening disorders of vital systems that are medical, surgical or obstetric in origin, and whether adult or paediatric.
-
Neurosurgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of the central, peripheral and autonomic nervous system including their supportive structures and blood supply. This includes the skull, brain, meninges, spinal cord, spine and pituitary gland. It also includes the management of traumatic, neoplastic, infective, congenital and degenerative conditions of these structures and surgical pain management.
-
Orthopaedic surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of the musculoskeletal system (bones, joints, ligaments, tendon and peripheral nerves). It includes the management of trauma to the musculoskeletal system and the management of congenital and acquired disorders.
-
Pain medicine is the biopsychosocial assessment and management of persons with complex pain, especially when an underlying condition is not directly treatable. The scope of pain medicine supplements that of other medical disciplines, and utilises interdisciplinary skills to promote improved quality-of-life through improved physical, psychological and social function.
-
A recent change to the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 sets a new requirement on all health profession regulators, including the Medical Council. We are now required to publish a policy setting out on when we might make public in some way, information about an order or direction made by us about a doctor.
-
Oral and maxillofacial surgery involves the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non-operative) of patients with diseases, injuries and defects of the mouth, jaws and associated structures. This includes oral and maxillofacial pathology, trauma, dentoalveolar surgery, orthognathic and relevant reconstructive surgery, and facial pain.
-
To ensure that you are continuing to maintain your competence to practise medicine, you must meet recertification programme requirements set by Council, including any minimum continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.
-
To ensure that you are continuing to maintain your competence to practise medicine, you must meet recertification programme requirements set by Council, including any minimum continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.
-
Certificates of professional status (COPS) are documents used by professional regulators to share information about whether a health practitioner is in good standing. Doctors or physician associates applying for registration, restoration or returning from practising outside New Zealand need to provide us with certificates of professional status.
-
Doctors and physician associates get sick too, and when they do it's important that their illness doesn't interfere with their ability to practise safely. A doctor or physician associate must always be able to practise without putting patients or the public at risk.
-
Paediatric surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of children (usually up to 15 years of age) who may require surgery. It includes non-cardiac thoracic surgery, general paediatric surgery, oncological surgery, urology in children and the management of congenital abnormalities both ante-natally and in the neonatal period. Also included is the management of major trauma in children.
-
Family planning and reproductive health is the treatment of and provision of health services for patients in relation to contraception, reproductive health and associated primary sexual health issues.
-
This page outlines how the process of renewing your practising certificate works and what to do if your certificate is about to expire and you haven't heard from us.
-
The professional services a doctor can perform in New Zealand are defined by the scope of practice for which they are registered.
-
We are now accepting applications via the new United Kingdom General Registrants pathway and the amended Examinations pathway.
-
General practice is an academic and scientific discipline with its own educational content, research, evidence base and clinical activity, and a clinical speciality orientated to primary care. It is personal, family, and community-orientated comprehensive primary care that includes diagnosis, continues over time and is anticipatory as well as responsive.
-
General surgery is a broad based specialty which includes the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of the colon and rectum, upper gastro-intestinal organs, breasts, endocrine organs, skin and subcutaneous structures, blood vessels (including varicose veins) and the head and neck region. It also includes the early and ongoing management of trauma.
-
Musculoskeletal medicine involves the diagnosis and treatment (or referral) of patients with neuro-musculoskeletal dysfunction, disorders and diseases, most of whom present with acute or chronic pain problems.
-
Rehabilitation medicine is the medical care of patients in relation to the prevention and reduction of disability and handicap arising from impairments, and the management of patients with disabilities from a physical, psychosocial and vocational viewpoint.
-
This pathway is for New Zealand and Australian medical graduates who have successfully completed their internship in Australia and want to register within the General scope of practice.
-
Ophthalmology involves the diagnosis and management of patients with abnormal conditions affecting the eye and its appendages, including prevention of blindness, promotion of eye health and rehabilitation of patients with visual disability.
-
We have three main types of registration (what we call scopes) for doctors - vocational, general and special purpose. Physician associates will apply for registration in the Physician Associate Provisional scope of practice. . Within each scope there are multiple application pathways. Each of these has specific requirements you need to meet in order to be registered. This section outlines the different pathways for each scope.
-
Dermatology is the study, research and diagnosis of disorders, diseases, cancers, cosmetic, ageing and physiological conditions of the skin, fat, hair, nails and oral and genital membranes.
-
Occupational medicine involves the study and practice of medicine related to the effects of work on health and health on work. It has clinical, preventive and population based aspects.
-
Paediatrics involves the assessment, diagnosis and management of infants, children and young people with disturbances of health, growth, behaviour and/or development. It also addresses the health status of this group through population assessments, intervention, education and research.
-
This pathway is for New Zealand and Australian medical graduates wanting to register within the Provisional General scope of practice to complete their internship.
-
Vascular surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative, including endoluminal techniques and interventional procedures) of patients with disorder of the blood vessels (arteries and veins outside the heart and brain) and the lymphatic system. It also includes the management of trauma and surgical access to the vascular system.
-
Diagnostic and interventional radiology is the diagnosis and treatment of patients utilising imaging modalities, including general radiography, angiography, fluoroscopy, mammography, ultrasound, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, nuclear medicine and bone densitometry.
-
Cardiothoracic surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of structures within the chest including: the heart and vascular system, the lungs and trachea, the oesophagus, the diaphragm and chest wall. It includes the management of trauma and congenital and acquired disorders of these structures.
-
Otolaryngology, head and neck surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of the ears, nose, throat, and related structures of the head and neck. This includes cancer of the head and neck (excluding the eye and the brain), disorders of the salivary glands and thyroid gland, disorders of hearing, balance, swallowing, speech, snoring/sleep apnoea and aspects of facial plastic surgery.
-
Doctors who hold overseas qualifications and who want to apply for registration in Aotearoa New Zealand must have key documents verified from their primary source. Since November 2017, Council has required primary source verification using the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates’ Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (ECFMG’s EPIC) service, which is now accessed via the MyIntealth portal.
-
All physician associates applying for registration in New Zealand must have key documents verified from their primary source. Council uses the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates’ (ECFMG) Credential Verification for Health Professionals (CVHP) service to do this.
-
Radiation oncology is the medical care and management of patients with cancer and other medical conditions through the conduct and supervision of radiation treatment, advice and provision of palliative and other supportive care, and advice and provision of other non-surgical cancer; advice and provision of other non-surgical cancer treatment including cytotoxic, hormonal and other drug therapies; participation in clinical trials and research related to cancer management.
-
If you, as an international medical graduate (IMG), apply for vocational registration and your application is successful, you will have to complete a provisional vocational registration period. You'll work under supervision for this period, during which we make sure you're competent to practise independently in your chosen field of medicine.
-
Special purpose research scope of practice is for doctors who come to New Zealand temporarily to undertake research. This special purpose scope is available for a maximum of two years and practise is restricted to research approved by a formally-constituted ethics committee in New Zealand.