Responsible Authorities are established under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. They are responsible for the regulation of specified health professions.
Each Responsible Authority (RA) describes scopes of practice, prescribes necessary qualifications, registers practitioners, and issues annual practising certificates for the professions it regulates. They also set standards of competence (including cultural competence) and ethical conduct. The RAs can investigate a practitioner’s fitness, competence, and/or conduct.
The RAs are funded entirely by their professions and have their own staff and premises. While the Minister of Health has a power of audit, the RAs have autonomy in making decisions such as setting scopes of practice or fees. The RAs must provide an Annual Report to the Minister of Health each year and are subject to regular performance reviews.
The Minister of Health appoints the governance members of each RA. Information about appointment opportunities can be viewed on the Board appointments page.
Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal
The Minister of Health is responsible for a single shared disciplinary body for all professions – the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal – which hears and determines more serious cases against health practitioners.