Council Functions

The Council's functions

Section 118 of the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 sets out the Council's functions:

To prescribe the qualifications required for scopes of practice within the profession, and, for that purpose, to accredit and monitor educational institutions and degrees, courses of studies, or programmes
To authorise the registration of health practitioners under the Act, and to maintain registers.
To consider applications for annual practising certificates.
To review and promote the competence of health practitioners.
To recognise, accredit, and set programmes to ensure the ongoing competence of health practitioners.
To receive and act on information from health practitioners, employers, and the Health and Disability Commissioner about the competence of health practitioners.
To notify employers, the Accident Compensation Corporation, the Director-General of Health, and the Health and Disability Commissioner that the practice of a health practitioner may pose a risk of harm to the public.
To consider the cases of health practitioners who may be unable to perform the functions required for the practice of the profession.
To set standards of clinical competence, cultural competence, and ethical conduct to be observed by health practitioners of the profession.
To liaise with other authorities appointed under the Act about matters of common interest.
To promote education and training in the profession.
To promote public awareness of the responsibilities of the authority.
To exercise and perform any other functions, powers and duties that are conferred or imposed on it by or under the Act or any other enactment.

Accountability

Each year the Council must give the Minister of Health an annual report, which must include the audited financial statements of the Council. A copy of each report is presented to the House of Representives by the Minister. Copies of the Council's annual reports are included in the publications section of this web site.

The Minister may also appoint an auditor to the audit the records of the Council in order to ascertain whether the Council is complying, or has complied, with the provisions of the HPCA Act. A copy of the auditor's report must be presented to the House of Representatives by the Minister.

The Minister may also ask the Council to supply statistical information relating the discharge of the functions of the authority.