Medico-legal secrecy in New Zealand

In the absence of the right to sue for medical negligence, the New Zealand Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC) and the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal (HPDT) have become the centrepieces of New Zealand's medico-legal system. This article examines the claim that for both bodies secrecy, by name suppression, is the default position and that the private interests of doctors are elevated above the legitimate public interest in the performance of medical professionals. In particular, it examines HDC's blanket policy of suppressing the names of complainants, practitioners, hospitals, District Health Boards and geographical locations, and HPDT's stated but wavering commitment to openness. The authors conclude that both bodies may have failed, albeit in different ways, to recognise the legitimate and significant public interest in the names of those few practitioners found in breach of professional standards.