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Position Description Position title: Kairēhita/Registrar

Organisation: Te Poari o ngā Kaihaumanu Hinengaro o Aotearoa /

Psychotherapists Board of Aotearoa New Zealand

Reports to: Board Chair

Responsible for: Part-time Registration Officer

Operating budget: $500,000

Revenue: $500,000

Experience: ▪ Thorough understanding of the Health Practitioners Competence

Assurance Act 2003 (HPCA Act), the role and functions of the regulator

and the resultant key accountabilities of the Registrar role.

▪ Proven record of successful management of a small-sized organisation or

professional team.

▪ Knowledge and experience in servicing boards and board committees.

▪ Proven record of establishing and delivering on strategic projects.

▪ Experience in complying with statutory requirements.

▪ Strong financial management and financial strategy experience, including

setting, monitoring and robust management of budgets.

Personal attributes: ▪ Outstanding communicator, able to inspire and lead especially if/when

difficult decision making is required.

▪ Excellent relationship management skills.

▪ Strong health sector networks and knowledge.

▪ Strong leadership skills.

▪ Strategic thinker.

▪ Ability to delegate appropriately to individual situations.

▪ Familiarity with governmental and legislative processes and the interface

between government and regulatory authorities.

Background

Te Poari o ngā Kaihaumanu Hinengaro o Aotearoa (the Board) is a statutory body constituted under the

HPCA Act. Its principal purpose is to protect the health and safety of the public by ensuring that

psychotherapists are competent and fit to practise their professions. The functions of the Board are set

out in section 118 of the HPCA Act.

The Board does this by providing a framework for regulation through its statutory functions (section

118 of the HPCA Act). The Board sets strategic direction and develops and approves policy that supports

the regulation of psychotherapists.

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A small secretariat, comprising a full-time Registrar and part-time Registration Officer, delivers the

strategic outcomes determined by the Board and implements its decisions and regulatory functions

according to delegations.

The Registrar supports the Board by fulfilling all duties of a Registrar as designated under the HPCA Act

and provides effective management and administrative services to the Board including strategic

direction and practical application.

Key accountabilities

Accountability Outcomes

1. Management of public safety through legislation

and compliance

▪ Ensure the statutory functions outlined in the HPCA

Act are adhered to and public safety is managed

through:

▪ setting standards of practice/conduct

▪ monitoring and setting education programme

standards

▪ ensuring every psychotherapist who practises is

fit to practise

▪ handling the complaints process and being the

public face for the Board.

▪ Ensure the Board is fully informed on developments

relevant to its statutory functions including current

issues, risks, relevant legislation and future trends.

▪ Identify and report trends in regulation and make

recommendations in relation to these.

▪ The Board operates within the

requirements of the HPCA, New

Zealand law and Board policy.

▪ Unusual or significant decisions are

escalated to the Board.

▪ Regulation trends are identified and

recommendations reported to the

Board.

2 Te Tiriti o Waitangi

▪ Engages in and supports the Board’s commitment to

te Tiriti o Waitangi and how this is contextualised in

the Board’s everyday work.

▪ Foster cultural competencies and ensure cultural

safety within the Board and in external interactions.

▪ Demonstrate a knowledge of te ao

Māori, tikanga and te Tiriti and ensure

this is contextualised in everyday

work of the Board.

▪ Board’s statutory responsibilities for

effective and respectful interaction

with Māori are met.

3 Risk management

▪ Ensure strategic, operational, financial and

regulatory risk is minimised through early

identification and mitigation.

▪ Risk is identified and appropriately

managed and escalated.

4 Setting strategy and direction

▪ Collaborate with the Board to develop strategic

plans and policies to meet agreed priorities and

anticipate future opportunities and needs.

▪ Provide leadership to ensure the organisation’s

capability and capacity to deliver strategic intent.

Take decisive action when required.

▪ Ensure a quick and flexible approach to regulatory

work and enhance the Board’s ability to respond to

emerging psychotherapist and regulatory trends.

▪ Strategic opportunities are identified

and appropriate actions undertaken.

▪ Big-picture thinking is incorporated

into business and strategic plans and

short-term and long-term implications

are considered.

▪ Strategic and annual plan is coherent,

clear measurable goals are

established and progress is reported

at each meeting.

5 Board support

▪ Attend and provide as required timely and accurate

reports for the Board and its committees on the

exercise of its statutory functions.

▪ Ensure the Board, its committees and any

individuals contracted to carry out work are

provided with researched advice and, where

requested, policy advice.

▪ Ensure that effective support services are provided

▪ Board agendas are complete,

proceedings are accurately recorded

and minutes produced.

▪ Maintain the calendar of the Board’s

functions and projects and arrange

for appropriate resources to service

them.

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to Professional Conduct Committees, Competence

Review Committees and the Health Practitioners

Disciplinary Tribunal.

▪ Ensure the implementation of policy decisions of the

Board within agreed timeframes.

▪ Manage Board meetings. Set the agenda for each

meeting in conjunction with the Chair. Produce

minutes of the meeting that accurately reflect the

Board’s deliberations and decisions and ensure

matters arising have been addressed.

6 People leadership

▪ Build and maintain a team of highly motivated and

competent staff to achieve the Board’s goals by

providing clear expectations and support,

development opportunities and regular feedback on

performance.

▪ Promote a safe and healthy workplace and comply

with all relevant legislation (including but not limited

to, the HPCA Act, Employment Relations Act 2000,

Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and Income

Tax Act 2005).

▪ Be committed to promoting a safe and inclusive

work environment that supports inclusion of all,

including the rainbow community.

▪ Induction processes are clear and

induction is well supported.

▪ Staff are engaged and productive.

▪ Performance reviews are undertaken.

▪ Values are evident throughout the

organisation.

▪ The Board meets all legislated health

and safety requirements.

7 Stakeholder leadership and engagement

▪ Be respected as a leader for the regulation of

psychotherapists and for setting and maintaining

standards for the profession of psychotherapist.

▪ Effectively identify stakeholders who have a vested

interest in each regulatory function of the Board and

initiate, develop and maintain collaborative and

effective working relationships.

▪ Maintain a positive relationship with service-level

agreement partner regulatory authorities.

▪ Functional relationships include:

▪ Board Chair

▪ Board members

▪ professional advisors and operational committee

members

▪ Registration Officer and any other employees or

contractors

▪ Nursing Board of New Zealand (NCNZ) as the

service-level agreement provider

▪ Registrars of all the Boards within the collocated

partner regulatory authorities group

▪ Registrars of all other regulatory authorities

under the HPCA Act

▪ Ministry of Health officials

▪ Chief Allied Health Officer

▪ HDC and HPDT employees

▪ health providers

▪ psychotherapists

▪ key staff within relevant professional and

educational bodies (training providers)

▪ media

▪ ASI (database)

▪ Zepher (database)

▪ DTSL (IT providers).

▪ The Board is positioned as an

advocate for public safety and

regulation of psychotherapists.

▪ Quality relationships with key

stakeholders are maintained.

▪ Develop and implement a

communications strategy including

maintaining an up-to-date website,

production of the annual report,

newsletters, other publications and

press releases as required.

▪ Enhance the Board’s image by

representing the Board in a positive

manner to all significant stakeholders.

▪ Represent the Board both locally and

at international level as required,

including acting as a spokesperson for

the Board in accordance with any

delegated responsibilities or

communication functions.

▪ Attend meetings, conferences and

events as required.

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8 Governance

▪ Work with the Board to assist it to fulfil its

governance functions to enable optimum

performance by the Board.

▪ Provide all necessary reports to enable the Board to

fulfil its legislative requirements.

▪ Alert the Board to actual and potential risk and

provide a solution to mitigate.

▪ The Board is fully supported and

supplied with all the information

needed to fulfil its governance role

effectively and in line with legislative

requirements.

9 Financial management

▪ Oversee the financial reporting and status of the

organisation including developing long-range and

short-range financial plans, monitoring the budget

and ensuring sound financial controls are in place.

▪ Regularly report and advise the Board of the

financial position.

▪ Ensure services are delivered in a cost-effective

manner while maintaining high levels of quality

outputs from the organisation.

▪ Ensure compliance with relevant legislation including

the Public Finance Act and liaise with the auditor.

▪ Maintain and monitor key deliverables from the

service-level agreement with NCNZ.

▪ Recognise that, as the Board is a developing

regulatory authority, a conservative financial

approach is needed, along with close and constant

monitoring of financial information and

performance.

▪ Strong, resilient budget management

and control.

▪ Financial reporting is regular and

understandable

▪ Conservative financial management

while Board is a developing regulatory

authority.

10 Communication

▪ Ensure the Board’s communication channels,

including the website, are current and consistent.

▪ Respond to media enquiries, issue media

statements and conduct media interviews.

▪ Communications are regular and up

to date.

▪ Board is viewed as transparent and

committed to its purpose of

protecting the safety of the public.

11 Records and systems management

▪ Maintain and develop effective, efficient and secure

office systems including those related to finance,

practitioner complaints, personnel and information

management.

▪ Ensure staff have sufficient access to

information and resources to be able

to carry out their duties and meet

their performance objectives.

▪ Ensure operational policies and

procedures are reviewed and

developed on a regular basis.

▪ Ensure any data held by the Board

meets the standards of privacy

required by the Privacy Act 2020.

12 Privacy Officer

▪ Act as the Privacy Officer and advise the Board on

obligations under the Privacy Act 2020.

▪ The Board and employees will be

aware of their obligations under the

Privacy Act and Health Information

Privacy Code.

▪ The Board complies with appropriate

requests under the Privacy Act and

Health Information Privacy Code and

responds to appropriate requests for

personal information.

Disclaimer

This position description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed

by the Registrar. This is not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and

skills required. The Registrar may be required to perform duties outside of the Registrar’s normal

responsibilities from time to time, as needed.