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489 results matching “latest version of the OLPA nz”
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We've added videos to help guide patients and other health consumers explaining how to make a notification, and the process that we follow when a notification is made
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Australasian colleges are required to meet the Aotearoa New Zealand specific standards. The Aotearoa NZ specific standards relate to recertification / continuing professional development.
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NZCMM accreditation update status as of 14 December 2023
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NZCMM accreditation update status as of 29 November 2023
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NZCSRH accreditation update status as of 15 August 2024
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Some pathways to registration require doctors to have completed their internship in a particular country. If you are applying for registration and did your internship somewhere else, this policy outlines how we will assess your suitability for registration.
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NZCSRH accreditation update status as of February 2026
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RNZCUC accreditation report relating to the visit on 21 and 23 October 2025
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RNZCUC accreditation update status as of 17 December 2024
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RNZCUC accreditation update status as of 22 March 2024
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NZAMM accreditation report relating to the visit on 18-19 November 2020
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NZDSI accreditation report relating to the visit on 3 and 4 August 2022
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RNZCGP accreditation report relating to the visit from 18 to 21 March 2024
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NZCPHM accreditation report relating to the visit on 4, 5 and 6 May 2022
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NZCSRH accreditation report 2026.
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Under sections 11 and 13 of the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003, Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand (“Council”) gives notice of an amendment to the notice titled “Scopes of Practice and Prescribed Qualifications for the Practice of Medicine in New Zealand Notice 2024.
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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.
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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.
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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
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Version 3 Superseded version 2 of Council's Te Mahere Rautaki Strategic Plan.
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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.
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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand’s latest quarterly workforce data shows that women now make up slightly more than half of practising doctors in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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You can use this document to provide feedback on the updated version of our statement Disclosure of harm following an adverse event
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V1 Superseded version of Council's Te Mahere Rautaki Strategic Plan.
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V2 Superseded version of Council's Te Mahere Rautaki Strategic Plan.
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This section of our website contains expired versions of our standards.
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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.
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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.
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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand (Council) invites feedback on proposed practising certificate (PC) fees, disciplinary levies, and other fees to take effect from 1 July 2026.
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The Chair of Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | The Medical Council of New Zealand, Dr Curtis Walker, reinforced today the technical and complex process required when thoroughly reviewing a doctor’s overseas qualifications, training and experience.
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Physician associates are trained health professionals who work under the supervision of adoctor to provide healthcare to patients.
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This page contains the latest Medical Council notices published in the Gazette for Scopes of Practice, prescribed qualifications and Fees.
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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.
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Media Release | Medical Council to regulate the Physician Associate profession
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This page contains all of the updates we've published around our COVID-19 response. Check this page regularly for our latest updates.
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There are two medical schools in Aotearoa New Zealand. Council recognises the primary medical training qualifications from both Aotearoa New Zealand and Australian medical schools.
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New Zealand’s medical workforce has grown to 21,097 practising doctors, with the latest Medical Council workforce report also showing changes in who makes up the profession, where doctors are working and how long they stay in New Zealand.
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Find out more about organisations that represent doctors
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Special purpose registration is a temporary form of registration, for specific purposes. It is not a pathway to permanent general or vocational registration. Entry on the Register is cancelled after a fixed time period.
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All physician associates applying for registration in the physician associate provisional scope of practice (except those applying via the NZ experiential pathway) must complete a Council-approved induction programme, within the 12 months immediately prior to applying for registration.
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The Medical Council of New Zealand will protect and safeguard personal information and treat it with the utmost care, respect and discretion. This includes all personal information collected online.This privacy notice applies to personal information that we collect through this website: www.mcnz.org.nz
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The Council and the Australian Medical Council (AMC) work together on accrediting the vocational medical training programmes offered by Australasian (joint Australian and New Zealand) vocational providers. If the applicant provider is seeking recognition in Australia (as an Australasian training provider), or if the scope is already recognised in Australia, stage 3 will be led by the AMC, with Council making a decision based on the AMC’s assessment.
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We have approximately 95 staff, including our Chief Executive and senior managers whose activities are overseen by a Council of 12 people who are a mix of doctors and laypeople. Our Chair is Dr Kenneth (Ken) Clark. Joan Simeon is our Manukura (Chief Executive) Officer.
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In this edition | This month we share the latest on physician associate regulation, highlight key discussions from our Annual Conference, invite your feedback on two open consultations, and provide an early look at responses to the Torohia survey.
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When a physician associate first applies for registration in New Zealand, they will be registered in the Physician Associate Provisional scope of practice. There are multiple pathways to registration in the Physician Associate Provisional scope. Each of these has specific requirements you will need to satisfy to be eligible for registration. This section outlines the different pathways for each scope.
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You are eligible for a 50 percent refund of your practising certificate fee if your medical income (including any tax) in New Zealand or overseas is NZ$20,000 or less.
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Working relationships with our key stakeholders are at the heart of everything we do to protect public health and safety. This page describes Council's relationships with Aotearoa New Zealand medical schools, Medical Colleges, Te Aka Whai Ora | Māori Health Authority, Te Whatu Ora | Health New Zealand, the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC), and other organisations where we have established a memoranda of understanding (MoU).
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Tell us who you are so we can better direct your enquiry
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If you are registered and practising in the provisional general scope as either a New Zealand or Australian medical graduate, or a doctor who has passed the NZ Registration Examination, you are required to complete prevocational medical training.
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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.
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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.
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The Medical Council of New Zealand |Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa today released the results of its 2025 Workforce Survey, showing continued growth, more diversity, and important shifts in the medical workforce.
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List of our fees effective from 1 July 2026
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This area of our site contains detailed information about the medical workforce in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand is committed to meeting Aotearoa New Zealand's healthcare demands by enabling highly qualified international and locally trained doctors to join the workforce through flexible and efficient registration pathways.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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NZREX Clinical - Application for recount of result
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NZREX Clinical - Checklist of documentation that must be provided with application.
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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.
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NZREX Clinical - Checklist of documentation that must be provided with application
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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.
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Handbook for candidates undertaking the NZREX Clinical.
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Diagram showing the basic layout of the stations candidates will rotate around during the NZREX Clinical.
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See all the policies relating to the NZREX Clinical here.
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List of texts we recommend candidates read before they undertake the NZREX Clinical.
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We are pleased to announce that we are increasing capacity to sit the NZREX Clinical across 2025, and plan to be able to examine up to 180 candidates over the course of 2025.
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The Minister of Health has announced two new initiatives targeted at overseas doctors who have passed their New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX) examination in the last five years, allowing them to apply for roles in New Zealand that will lead to full registration as a doctor.
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We recognise Taiwanese medical schools so that graduates from these schools have the opportunity to undertake NZREX Clinical. We must ensure we only register fully qualified doctors. However, the exclusion of Taiwanese medical schools from WDOMS is due to political factors and not the standard of those schools. The ECFMG has approved graduates of these schools to undertake the prerequisite examination - USMLE Steps 1 and 2.
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Memorandum of understanding between Medical Council of New Zealand and New Zealand Private Surgical Hospitals Association
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NZREX Clinical - Application to change to a later examination
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Over coming weeks, we will be scheduling additional NZREX clinical examinations, to facilitate IMGs, who do not meet requirements for other pathways, an opportunity to gain eligibility for registration. To inform decisions on the number and timing of examinations, we are collecting information to understand the potential number of eligible doctors waiting to sit the NZREX clinical exam.
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Sample questions from the NZREX Clinical to help candidates prepare.
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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.
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This form outlines the additional information that will be required by the NZCPHM so it can provide us with advice on your application for vocational registration in public health medicine.
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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.
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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.
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If you are registered and practising in a vocational scope only, you must participate in the recertification programme offered by the medical college or other approved recertification provider responsible for your vocational scope of practice.
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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.
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If you wish to apply for the NZREX Clinical, you must meet the requirements outlined in this Policy. You will also need to submit a recent photo in order to apply for the NZREX Clinical, this policy also outlines the requirements for the photo we need.
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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.
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You can download copies of your current and expired practising certificates by logging into your myMCNZ account.
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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.
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Medical Council Chair Dr Rachelle Love responds to the final report from the Abuse in State Care Royal Commission Inquiry.
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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.
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Established on 1 July 2022, Te Whatu Ora leads the day-to-day running of the health system across New Zealand, with functions delivered at local, district, regional and national levels.
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Council is working to improve patient safety by strengthening our approach to the regulation of doctors performing cosmetic procedures.
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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.
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We're pleased to announce the launch of our new data dashboard, now available on our website. This dashboard provides a comprehensive and dynamic overview of registered and practising doctors in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Find out how to keep us up to date with changes to your information including your name, employment, and addresses.
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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.
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The Medical Council has today launched Torohia – Medical Training Survey for New Zealand, a new survey designed with the profession, for the profession, to better understand doctors’ experience of postgraduate training.
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This page contains support information that relates to neither patients doctors or physician associates.
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This pathway is for New Zealand and Australian medical graduates wanting to register within the Provisional General scope of practice to complete their internship.
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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/
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Request for confirmation of internship, NZREX pass, or general registration.
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All international medical graduates (IMGs) registered in a provisional general, provisional vocational and special purpose scope of practice must be supervised. This is to support their practice while they become familiar with the New Zealand health system and the expected standard of medical practice.
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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand is inviting feedback on proposals for how PAs should be regulated in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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This dashboard page contains information around how long doctors remain in New Zealand after their initial registration.
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A history of the Medical Council of New Zealand, compiled by Professor Richard Sainsbury.
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Our definition of the practice of medicine and clinical practice
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This dashboard page contains information around Māori and Pacific Peoples doctors in the medical workforce including breakdowns by age, gender, and work role.
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The Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (HPCAA) requires us to specify the scopes of practice within which doctors are permitted to practice, and to describe and define the boundaries of each.
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The Medical Council of New Zealand has two new members. The Hon Matt Doocey, Associate Minister of Health, made the appointments, which are effective from 1 July 2024 for a three-year term. The Minister also reappointed two current members for further terms. These four appointments follow the election by the profession, earlier this year.
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This document provides general advice to employers (including Te Whatu Ora | Health New Zealand and some PHOs) about their responsibilities as an employer of a doctor.
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Malatest Evaluation of the RPR Programme - end of year 2014
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Evaluation of Council's RPR programme by Malatest International - end of year report for 2016
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Evaluation of Council's RPR programme by Malatest International - end of year report for 2017
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Evaluation of Council's RPR programme by Malatest International - mid year report for 2016
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Malatest Evaluation of the RPR Programme: mid-year 2017
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Evaluation of Council's RPR programme by Malatest International - mid year report for 2018
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Evaluation of Council's RPR programme by Malatest International - mid year report for 2015
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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.
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Evaluation of Council's RPR programme by Malatest International - Interim report to November 2014
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It is Council’s role to accredit and monitor specialist training providers and to promote medical education training in Aotearoa New Zealand. Council assesses Aotearoa New Zealand-based vocational medical training and recertification providers against these standards.
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Faster, easier registration for overseas-trained doctors to enter Aotearoa New Zealand’s medical workforce
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The Council offers two clinical supervision courses for clinical supervisors and prevocational educational supervisors. The courses supplement training that supervisors receive from training providers and medical colleges. Courses are available to all supervisors through the ePort platform.
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This dashboard page contains information around doctors undertaking vocational training in New Zealand.
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Evaluation of Council's RPR programme by Malatest International - end of year report for 2017
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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.
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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.
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Summary of the Malatest evaluation of the regular practice review (RPR) programme for 2017.
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Council requires all doctors in PGY2, to satisfy the requirements of a programme ordered by Council under section 40 of the HPCAA.
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Evaluation of Council's RPR programme by Malatest International - end of year report for 2015
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From November 2014, Council reviewed and implemented significant changes to prevocational medical training requirements for doctors in Aotearoa New Zealand. The changes aim to improve patient safety and the performance of doctors through provision of high-quality learning.
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Under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003, responsible authorities such as the Medical Council undergo regular independent reviews of how they are carrying out their statutory functions. The Act requires responsible authorities to publish their review report on their website.
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This dashboard page contains information around international medical graduates, doctors who obtained their primary medical qualification outside of New Zealand.
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We are seeking your feedback on the draft Professional standards for PAs. These draft standards propose the principles and values of good PA practice and the professional standards expected of PAs working in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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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.
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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.
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This pathway is for physician associates who have experience practising clinically in New Zealand.
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Manatū Hauora | Ministry of Health is the agency responsible for the proposal and consultation on the regulation of physician associates under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. The Medical Council made a submission during the Ministry’s consultation on the proposal in December 2023 (as did a number of other organisations) and is awaiting the Ministry’s release of the outcome. The Medical Council cannot advise on when this information will be released by the Ministry.
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Disclosure of harm refers to instances where a patient has been adversely affected as a direct result of medical care. Open disclosure in this situation promotes transparency, can strengthen the doctor-patient relationship and is important for the health and safety of the public in general. This statement is intended to help doctors understand the purpose of open disclosure and why it matters to patients and their family/whānau. It also guides doctors on factors to consider when a situation requires that the harm is disclosed.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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An audit of medical practice is a systematic, critical analysis of the quality of a doctor’s own practice, the results of which are used to improve clinical care and/or health outcomes, or to confirm that current management is consistent with the current available evidence or accepted consensus guidelines.
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This page sets out the recertification programme requirements for doctors registered and practising in the General scope of practice only. This is typically either participation in a medical college vocational training programme, or in the Inpractice recertification programme.
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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.
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Our current scopes of practice and prescribed qualifications (as published in the New Zealand Gazette on 5 April 2023, Notice no. 2023-gs1359).
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The professional services a doctor can perform in New Zealand are defined by the scope of practice for which they are registered.
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We are now accepting applications via the new United Kingdom General Registrants pathway and the amended Examinations pathway.
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The International Association of Medical Regulatory Authorities (IAMRA) signed a historic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) today with the World Health Organization in a ceremony in Geneva.
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We serve Aotearoa New Zealand by protecting the health and safety of the public. We do this by setting and promoting standards for doctors and physician associates.
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In August 2021, Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa |Medical Council of New Zealand, underwent a full performance review that showed compliance to our obligations under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (HPCAA).
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An amendment of this notice was published on 1 October 2024, Notice No. 2024-sl4980 and another amendment was published on 31 March 2025, Notice No. 2025-sl1765.
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Te Kōwhiringa o Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa 2024 | The Medical Council of New Zealand election 2024
Council elections are about building a strong Council that the public, government and medical profession can have confidence in. The opportunity to cast your vote for the election of four medical members to join the governance of the Medical Council is available starting Tuesday, 20 February 2024. -
Under sections 11 and 13 of the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003, Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand (“Council”) gives notice of an amendment to the notice titled “Scopes of Practice and Prescribed Qualifications for the Practice of Medicine in New Zealand Notice 2024.
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There are two key scopes of practice for physician associates:
Physician Associate Provisional scope of practice (for first period of registration).
Physician Associate General scope of practice (for physician associates who have completed the provisional period) . -
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.
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Search the registers of doctors and physician associates registered in New Zealand.
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This guide will help you when you complete the workforce survey as part of your application to renew your practising certificate.
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Search the registers of doctors and physician associates registered in New Zealand.
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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | The Medical Council of New Zealand (Council) recently held an election to select four medical practitioner nominees and can now announce the results of this election.
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Under section 14 of the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (“Act”), Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa |
Medical Council of New Zealand (“Council”) gives notice of an amendment to the notice titled “Scopes of Practice and
Prescribed Qualifications for the Practice of Medicine in New Zealand Notice 2024” published in the New Zealand Gazette, 30 September 2024, Notice No. 2024-sl4580 -
This policy outlines the requirements you must meet in order to be issued a general scope without limitations.
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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.
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Approved list of postgraduate medical qualifications recognised for registration via the VOC4 pathway
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This document outlines the standards that an applicant will be assessed against.
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We are consulting with stakeholders on the proposed introduction of a fee for the accreditation of New Zealand-based vocational training and recertification providers.
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An amendment to our current scopes of practice and prescribed qualifications correcting the commencement date (as published in the New Zealand Gazette on 1 October 2024).
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You can apply for registration through this pathway if you hold a qualification accredited for licensure in Canada for registration as a physician associate.
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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.
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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.
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This page contains a full list of our forms including application, report and referee forms, as well as checklists and the current fees payable.
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This document sets out Council’s policy in regards to accrediting training providers of prevocational medical training (training providers) and their clinical attachments. It outlines the components of the accreditation assessment.
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This gazette notice lists the fees payable from 1 July 2025.
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To apply for registration within a special purpose (locum tenens) scope of practice, you must first hold an approved postgraduate qualification in the branch of medicine in which you want to work, and then meet remaining requirements outlined in the registration policy.
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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
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This gazette notice lists the fees payable from 1 July 2026.
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The New Zealand Curriculum Framework for Prevocational Medical Training (NZCF) outlines the learning outcomes to be substantively completed in PGY1 and by the end of PGY2
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The purpose of these principles is to provide a framework for good decision-making about notifications assessed and managed by the Council. The principles are not intended to cover every specific scenario but rather provide guidance in how notifications should be assessed and managed. The framework applies to the decisions of the Notifications Triage Team (NTT) and of Council.
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In late 2009 we asked the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (CHRE) to undertake a full review of how we were performing. This is their report on how we did.
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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.
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A Review of Prevocational Training Requirements for Doctors in New Zealand: Stage 2 - A second consultation paper on the proposed changes to prevocational training
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Graduates of Aotearoa New Zealand and Australian accredited medical schools and doctors who have sat and passed an approved medical registration examination, including the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical) complete prevocational medical training.
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Council is proposing to change the current requirement that international medical graduates registered in the special purpose teleradiology scope of practice must be supervised by doctors based in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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This document outlines the policy, process and guidelines for recognition of a new vocational scope of practice.
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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.
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Graduates of Aotearoa New Zealand and Australian accredited medical schools and doctors who have sat and passed an approved medical registration examination, including the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical) complete prevocational medical training.
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This report presents the results of the 2026 workforce survey. Key findings include 21,097 practising doctors, a 2.8% rise from last year. Over half are women, and representation of Māori (5.8%) and Pacific (2.8%) doctors is growing.
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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.
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Applicants for registration as well as doctors applying for the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical) must satisfy Council that they are able to comprehend and communicate effectively in English in the workplace, as one of the prerequisites for registration. This policy sets out the specific requirements that must be met.
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This gazette notice lists the scopes of practice and prescribed qualifications for Physician Associates.
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Process for assessment and accreditation of Aotearoa New Zealand based vocational training providers
This guide sets out the accreditation process for Aotearoa New Zealand-only vocational training providers that are currently accredited by MCNZ. It applies both to currently accredited providers seeking reaccreditation, as well as unaccredited providers seeking accreditation.
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There are two special purpose scopes of practice which enable us to react to emergencies and unpredictable situations or disasters and pandemics. The specific requirements and length of registration depend on the event, and are determined by the Council when required.
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The Standards for accreditation of specialist medical training programmes are jointly agreed and applied by the Australian Medical Council (AMC) and the Medical Council of New Zealand (MCNZ). Australasian colleges are required to apply the New Zealand specific criteria in addition to the AMC standards.
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These standards have been superseded by the 2022 standards above.
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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.
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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).
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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.
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Training providers that offer vocational medical training and recertification programmes must gain accreditation with the Council by meeting the Accreditation standards for Aotearoa New Zealand training providers of vocational medical training and recertification programmes (2022).
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As part of ongoing work to ensure that registration policies are fit for purpose and enabling, Council is reviewing its orientation, induction and supervision guide. The current guide has been in place for several years. With the evolving nature of supervision, now is an appropriate time to review and revise it.
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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.
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If you are registered and practising in both the General and a vocational scope of practice, you need to meet recertification requirements in both scopes of practice.
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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.
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Council collects workforce data from doctors as part of the renewal of practising certificates.
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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.
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Council is reviewing the core ethical standards it sets for the profession, ensuring the standards reflect both patient expectations and the realities of clinical practice. As part of this work, we have sought feedback from patients and doctors and have now released two reports that reflect their views.
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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.
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The Medical Council of New Zealand is pleased to advise that at its recent meeting, Dr Kenneth Clark was elected Chair of Council. The Council also elected Ms Ming-Chun Wu Deputy Chair.
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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.
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Prevocational training requirements for doctors in their PGY1 year
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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.
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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.
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The special purpose teleradiology scope of practice enables doctors without the recognised New Zealand or Australasian qualification to provide teleradiology services for patients in New Zealand.
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This report presents the results of our 2025 workforce survey. Key findings include 20,530 practising doctors, a 2.6% rise from last year. Nearly half are women (49.6%), and representation of Māori (5.5%) and Pacific (2.7%) doctors is growing among younger doctors. International medical graduates continue to play a vital role, especially outside the main centres.
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Doctors accompanying individuals or groups of people visiting New Zealand who will provide medical diagnosis, treatment or advice only to those individuals or groups, and who are not registered with the Medical Council will not be required to obtain registration and a practising certificate, so long as they restrict their practice to those individuals or groups for the duration of their visit.
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Our consultation regarding the strengthening of the accreditation framework for prevocational medical training is now open. We invite your feedback.
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Any doctor or physician associate applying for registration in New Zealand must be fit for registration and fit to practise. It's a legal requirement on us to ensure they are. We determine this as part of our assessment of your application for registration.