Please email communications@hdc.org.nz if you have a media query. The Communications team checks this inbox twice a day, Monday to Friday between 8.30am to 5.30pm. We have a small communications team. We will work to respond to your request as soon as we can and do our best to meet your deadlines, however it may take two to three working days for final responses.
While we recognise that there can be high levels of public interest, we are unable to comment on open complaints. This is to ensure the protection of natural justice, the privacy of all parties involved in the complaint, and a fair and impartial process.
We can confirm whether we have received a complaint if the complainant’s correct name is provided and the complainant has agreed.
Generally we are unable to comment on the stage a complaint may be at because of the many variables affecting the assessment process.
We are unable to provide additional comment on the specifics of closed complaints.
If we do not find a breach of the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers’ Rights (the Code), we cannot comment on the complaint, because the information is privileged — between HDC and those involved in the complaint. However, a complainant is entitled to talk about their complaint.
We are able to talk in general terms about matters raised in decisions.
Final decisions are published on Mondays at 2pm - HDC’s Latest Decisions.
Our naming policy applies only to naming by the Health and Disability Commissioner. The Commissioner has no legal power to order name suppression. That means it is possible for participants in an investigation to publicise names.
The decision to name comes after the Commissioner has formed an opinion on whether there has been a breach of the Code.
Around 4–5 percent of complaints are investigated formally and, of these, about 70–75 percent result in a breach finding. The naming policy applies to findings in breach of the Code.
If the Director of Proceedings or the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal is involved, we will not name a provider until any processes (including appeals) have been completed.
When applying the naming policy, key considerations are:
In general, the Commissioner will name the following if they are found in breach of the Code, unless it is not in the public interest or it unfairly compromises the privacy of individual providers or consumers:
Individual providers have the strongest privacy interest in protecting their professional reputation and livelihood. These interests must be weighed carefully against relevant public interest considerations. If one or more of the following factors are present, the naming of a provider is likely:
