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The independent Health and Disability Commissioner receives all complaints against health practitioners. However, it can decide to refer a complaint to the Council to investigate. Consumers who are unhappy about the care provided by their oral health practitioner are encouraged to talk or write to their provider first - see Concerns about your Dental Treatment. If the case is referred to the Dental Council from the Health and Disability Commissioner the Dental Council may decide to refer the matter to a competency review committee or establish a three person Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) in order to review the complaint. The PCC is made up of two practitioners from the same profession and a layperson and its role is to investigate a complaint and decide whether it should be referred to the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal for a hearing. The Tribunal is chaired by a barrister or solicitor and four persons selected from a panel maintained by the Ministry of Health, three of whom must be from the same profession as the practitioner under investigation, and one of whom must be a layperson. The current list of members of the panels are shown here. While every effort is made to ensure a speedy process, delays can occur as the process involves several steps which must be taken to ensure fairness for the complainant and practitioner. HPDT DecisionsPrevious decisions of the HPDT can be seen on the HPDT website under Tribunal's Decisions / Dentists. |
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