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HEALTH AND DISABILITY SERVICES (COMPLAINTS) ACT 1995 - SECT 10

10 .         Director’s functions

        (1)         The functions of the Director are as follows —

            (a)         to deal with complaints in accordance with this Act;

            (aa)         to conduct investigations under this Act;

            (b)         in collaboration with groups of providers or groups of users or both, to review and identify the causes of complaints, and to suggest ways of removing and minimizing those causes and bringing them to the notice of the public;

            (c)         to take steps to bring to the notice of users and providers details of complaints procedures under this Act;

            (d)         to assist providers in developing and improving complaints procedures and the training of staff in handling complaints;

            (e)         with the approval of the Minister, to inquire into broader issues of health care arising out of complaints received;

            (f)         subject to subsection (4), to cause information about the work of the Office to be published from time to time;

            (g)         to provide advice generally on any matter relating to complaints under this Act, and in particular —

                  (i)         advice to users on the making of complaints to registration boards; and

                  (ii)         advice to users as to other avenues available for dealing with complaints; and

                  (iii)         advice about removing or minimising the causes of complaints;

            (h)         any other function conferred on the Director by this Act or another written law.

        (2)         The Director may do all things that are necessary or convenient to be done for the performance of the Director’s functions.

        (3)         Without limiting subsection (2) the Director may with the approval of a registration board or the State Administrative Tribunal, as the case may be —

            (a)         appear at any proceedings before that board or the State Administrative Tribunal and call witnesses and otherwise adduce evidence and make submissions; and

            (b)         do any of those things through a representative.

        (4)         The function of the Director under subsection (1)(f) does not include the publication of information in a form that —

            (a)         discloses the identity of a user involved in a complaint; or

            (b)         might enable the identity of any such person to be ascertained,

                but nothing in this subsection affects the operation of section 56.

        (5)         The Director is to perform any function conferred on or imposed on the Director under any other Act.

        [Section 10 amended: No. 44 of 1999 s. 28(2); No. 55 of 2004 s. 493; No. 33 of 2010 s. 9; No. 35 of 2022 s. 6.]



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