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Start here: eight courses every physiotherapist under review should consider
Physiotherapy complaints range from a single misunderstood treatment to repeated boundary crossings, but the response the Board wants to see is similar: a practitioner who understands the standard, recognises how the patient experienced the care, and has changed something. The core set gives you that foundation before you add courses for the specific concern.
Ethics for physiotherapists deals with values and reasoning: respect for autonomy, acting in the patient's interests, fairness in a funded system and how to work through a conflict, such as a patient pressing for treatment you think will not help. Professional standards for physiotherapists deals with conduct the Board can measure: the Standards Framework, informed consent, records, scope, supervision of assistants and students, and accountability when something goes wrong. One teaches you how to decide; the other shows what a competent physio does.
Six process courses complete the set: responding to a complaint, remediation under the HPCA Act, insight, reflection, preventing recurrence and rebuilding trust. Together they help you produce a coherent account of learning rather than a collection of unrelated certificates.
Core setComplete the set with these
Ethics and ethical conduct in physiotherapy
The Aotearoa New Zealand Physiotherapy Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct is shared by the Board and Physiotherapy New Zealand, and a revised version has been consulted on (the draft proposes the term kiritaki for the person receiving care). Ethical concerns tend to involve autonomy and fairness: continuing treatment that is no longer helping, pressure to fit funded session limits, recommending products in which you have an interest, or not respecting a patient's cultural preferences about touch, gender of practitioner or whānau involvement.
These courses help you explain your reasoning at the time, identify the principle you missed and show how you will handle similar situations, including when to seek peer advice.
RecommendedStart with these
Professionalism, conduct and attitude
The Board has reported that conduct complaints about physiotherapists grew faster than competence complaints, and that miscommunication features in many of them. Conduct concerns include rude or dismissive communication, ignoring a patient's request to stop, unprofessional comments about colleagues, poor supervision of physiotherapy assistants and students, and online behaviour that undermines trust in the profession.
Choose these courses when the issue is how you behaved rather than what treatment you chose. They help you describe the expected standard, recognise the impact on others and set out practical changes, such as revised supervision arrangements or a communication plan for difficult conversations.
RecommendedStart with these
Further relevantAdd if they fit the concern
Probity, honesty and ACC claims
Many physiotherapy services are funded through ACC, which means claims, treatment records and invoices must match what was delivered. The Board has noted that ACC has been a source of complaints, and that fraud complaints have gone to a Professional Conduct Committee, with one passed to Police. Typical probity concerns include billing for longer or more sessions than delivered, claiming for treatment provided by someone else, back-dating notes, or a false declaration in your practising certificate application.
Get legal advice early if honesty is questioned. These courses cover what probity means for a practitioner, accurate records and claims, conflicts of interest and how to show the change is lasting, for example with audit of your own claims.
RecommendedStart with these
Further relevantAdd if they fit the concern
Professional boundaries with patients and colleagues
Physiotherapy involves touch, undressing and repeated one-to-one contact, so boundaries need active management. The Board has said that boundary issues almost always go to a Professional Conduct Committee and often lead to conditions on practice. Its advice includes explaining undressing and draping, getting consent at every appointment, and using a chaperone for pelvic or breast treatment and for patients under 18, recording consent and the chaperone's identity. A support person does not give the same protection as a chaperone.
Boundary courses cover the spectrum from small crossings, such as personal messages or treating friends without clear boundaries, to sexual misconduct, and help you set safeguards that a committee will see as real.
RecommendedStart with these
Clinical care, treatment decisions and records
Competence complaints often end with no further action, the Board has said, but some lead to a competence review. Typical issues include missing a red flag, progressing exercise too fast after surgery, poor assessment before manipulation or dry needling, not referring on, or records that do not show the reasoning behind a plan. ACC clinical advisor work has also attracted more complaints recently.
These courses help you rebuild the clinical basis of your practice, including documentation that records consent, findings and reasoning, and risk management for higher-risk techniques.
RecommendedStart with these
Notification, investigation and the Tribunal
If you have received a notice that a matter has gone to HDC, competence reviewers or a Professional Conduct Committee, these courses explain each stage and how to respond in a measured, timely way. They also help you organise your evidence of learning so your adviser can use it at the point where it will help most.
RecommendedStart with these
Further relevantAdd if they fit the concern
Match the concern to a course
The concerns that most often lead to complaints and investigations, how they are viewed, and the courses that address each one.
Inadequate consent for treatment or undressing
The Board expects consent at every appointment, with undressing and draping explained; HDC assesses this against Rights 6 and 7 of the Code of Rights.
Boundary breach or sexual misconduct
The Board has said boundary issues almost always go to a Professional Conduct Committee and often result in conditions on practice.
No chaperone for sensitive treatment
Board advice is to use a chaperone for pelvic or breast treatment and for patients under 18, and to record consent and the chaperone's identity.
Inaccurate ACC claims or invoices
Fraud complaints have gone to a PCC and one to Police; claims must match the treatment and time delivered.
Poor communication with a patient
The Board reports that miscommunication features in many complaints; explaining condition, treatment and prognosis helps prevent them.
Missed red flag or unsafe progression
Usually a competence matter; it may end with no further action or lead to a competence review.
Thin or retrospective records
Notes that do not show assessment, consent and reasoning make it hard to evidence safe practice.
Unprofessional behaviour towards colleagues or students
Treated as conduct; relevant to the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, whose revision adds anti-bullying provisions in draft.
Who deals with a complaint about a physiotherapist
HDC and the Code of Rights
If a complaint involving a health consumer comes to the Board, it must be referred to the Health and Disability Commissioner. The Board cannot take disciplinary action until HDC decides whether to investigate (section 70 of the HPCA Act). HDC measures your care against the Code of Rights, especially Rights 5 to 7 on communication, information and informed consent.
Board triage
The Board can take no further action (for example, if the issue is being dealt with elsewhere or practice already met the standard), arrange professional or educational engagement in which Board staff discuss how to improve practice, order a competence review, or refer the matter to a Professional Conduct Committee. While HDC has the complaint, the Board can still make interim orders (section 69) or start a competence review.
Competence review
Independent reviewers assess your practice and report to the Board, which decides what follows: for example a competence programme or conditions on your scope. The complainant does not take part.
Professional Conduct Committee
A PCC is an independent committee of three core members plus a legal advisor. It can take no further action, make recommendations to the Board, lay a charge before the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal or refer the matter to Police. The Board must refer some criminal convictions to a PCC.
Health notifications
Registered practitioners must notify the Board of a health condition that affects safe practice. This is handled under the health provisions of the Act, separately from conduct.
What the Board cannot do, and what stays the same
The Board cannot order refunds or compensation, give advocacy or legal advice, or direct ACC. Suspension and removal from the register are reserved for the most serious breaches. In most cases you keep practising and keep meeting your recertification requirements while the matter is assessed.
What the Board, reviewers and a PCC weigh up
- Understanding of the patient's experience, especially where touch, undressing or pain were involved.
- Evidence of consent recorded for each treatment and each appointment, not only the first.
- Accurate records and claims that match what was delivered.
- Insight and candour in your response to the patient, HDC and the Board.
- Concrete remediation: learning, peer review, chaperone policy, audit of your notes or claims.
- Low risk of repetition, shown by changes that would still hold on a busy day.
What a certificated course can and cannot do
A course cannot decide your case and we never promise an outcome. It can show, with a dated certificate, that you have studied the relevant standard, passed a 20-question assessment at 80% and reflected on how the learning applies to your patients. That kind of verifiable, targeted evidence is more persuasive than general assurances.
They are not a substitute for a competence programme, educational engagement or conditions set by the Board or the Tribunal, unless they accept them. If you have been told to complete specific education, check with the Board, your supervisor or your lawyer first.
A practical sequence for physiotherapists
- Take advice first. Speak to your indemnity insurer, Physiotherapy New Zealand if you are a member, your union if relevant, or a lawyer, before you send anything to HDC or the Board.
- Match courses to the concern. Begin with the core set, then add the group that fits: boundaries and chaperones, ACC claims, records or clinical care.
- Complete them privately. Study at your own pace; enrolment is confidential.
- Write your reflection. Describe what happened, what you now understand and the changes you have made, with no patient identifiers.
- Provide it through your adviser. If they agree it will help, include your certificates and reflection with your response.
Insight, reflection and remediation for physios
Insight means showing you understand how your actions affected the patient and the profession's reputation. In hands-on care the gap is often between intention and perception: you were treating, but the patient felt exposed or uninformed. Insight starts with recognising that perception matters.
Reflection turns that recognition into a written record. Focus on learning, keep it de-identified and remember that a Professional Conduct Committee can call for information. Statements made for a competence review or programme have statutory protection under section 44(4) of the Act; private notes do not.
Remediation is the change: a new consent script, a chaperone policy, peer review of your notes, or audit of ACC claims. Formal remediation may be ordered as a competence programme or conditions; voluntary steps taken early show initiative.
Support while the matter is open
Investigations can take months. Keep a trusted colleague or mentor informed, and use peer support. If you need to talk to someone now, call or text 1737, Need to talk?, free at any time. The Board keeps both the practitioner and the complainant informed as a matter progresses.
Start your learning plan
Pick the core set, add the concern group that fits and keep your certificates and reflection together for your adviser.
Questions
Does the Physiotherapy Board investigate a complaint straight away?
Not if it involves a health consumer. The Board must refer the complaint to the Health and Disability Commissioner and cannot take disciplinary action until HDC decides whether to investigate. In the meantime the Board can still make interim orders if there is a risk, or begin a competence review. Many complaints are resolved or closed at the HDC stage.
What is professional or educational engagement?
It is one of the lighter outcomes the Board can choose: a discussion with Board Secretariat staff aimed at improving your practice, rather than a formal finding. Treat it seriously. Completing a relevant course and writing a short reflection afterwards shows you acted on the conversation, which helps if any later concern arises.
Who sits on a Professional Conduct Committee for a physiotherapist?
The Board describes a PCC as an independent committee of three core members, supported by a legal advisor. It investigates the matter, can require information, and then decides whether to take no further action, make recommendations to the Board, lay a charge before the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal or refer the matter to Police.
Which code will my conduct be measured against?
The Board assesses physiotherapists against the Physiotherapy Standards Framework and the Aotearoa New Zealand Physiotherapy Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, which it shares with Physiotherapy New Zealand. A revised code has been consulted on; check the Board's website for the version in force for your matter. HDC uses the Code of Rights.
When should I use a chaperone?
The Board has advised physiotherapists to use a chaperone for pelvic or breast treatment and for patients under 18, and to document consent and the name of the chaperone. It notes that a support person brought by the patient does not give the same protection. Offering a chaperone more widely for sensitive examinations is good practice.
Can the Board make me refund a patient?
No. The Board says it cannot order refunds or compensation, provide advocacy or legal advice, or direct ACC on clinical matters. Its role is to protect the public by making sure physiotherapists are competent and fit to practise. Financial disputes are dealt with through other channels.
Which courses suit an ACC billing concern?
Start with probity and financial integrity, then documentation, because accurate notes are the basis of any claim. Add the core process courses on insight, reflection and preventing recurrence. If the concern involves possible fraud, get legal advice before responding, as the Board has referred fraud matters to a Professional Conduct Committee and to Police.
Will a competence review involve the patient who complained?
No. The Board's information explains that in a competence review independent reviewers assess your practice and report to the Board, and the complainant does not take part. The focus is on whether your practice meets the required standard and what support or programme would help if it does not.
How long is each physiotherapy remediation course?
Each course carries two or three hours of estimated learning time, depending on the topic. You work through it online at your own pace, complete knowledge checks, then sit a 20-question assessment with an 80% pass mark. You receive a certificate and a structured reflective account straight away.
Should I contact the patient who complained?
Take advice before doing so. Contact during an HDC or Board process can be misread, and a patient who has complained may not want to hear from you directly. HDC encourages low-level resolution where appropriate, but your indemnity insurer or lawyer can tell you whether and how to approach it in your situation.
Can I keep treating patients during the investigation?
Usually, yes. Unless the Board makes an interim order imposing conditions or suspending your practising certificate because of a risk of harm, you continue practising within your scope. Keep meeting your recertification requirements and consider extra safeguards, such as a chaperone policy, while the matter is open.
What penalties can the Tribunal give a physiotherapist?
If a charge is proven, the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal can censure, fine up to NZ$30,000, impose conditions on practice for up to three years, suspend registration for up to three years or cancel it, and order costs. These outcomes are reserved for the most serious matters.
How do I write a reflection that a committee will find credible?
Be specific. Describe what happened, how the patient experienced it, which standard applied, what you have learned and the exact changes you have made, such as a consent script or a note-audit routine. Avoid blaming others or explaining away. Keep it free of identifying details. Our reflection course includes a template for this.
I give clinical advice to ACC rather than treating patients. Can I be complained about?
Yes. The Board has noted a recent increase in complaints about physiotherapists working as ACC clinical advisors. Advisory work is still physiotherapy practice, so the Standards Framework and the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct apply. Concerns usually involve the quality of reasoning, staying within your competence and clear, respectful written communication, so the professional standards, documentation and communication courses are the best fit.
Do health notifications follow the same process?
No. A health condition that may affect safe practice is handled under the health provisions of the HPCA Act, separately from conduct. The Board says notification is mandatory for registered practitioners. The aim is safe practice and support, which may involve conditions, rather than discipline.
Official sources
Checked October 2026. Rules and processes change, so confirm the current position with the official source. This page is general information, not legal advice.
- Physiotherapy Board of New Zealand: complaints and notifications
- Physiotherapy Board: further information on the rising numbers of complaints and notifications
- Physiotherapy Board: Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct review
- Health and Disability Commissioner: Code of Rights
- Health and Disability Commissioner: complaint process
- Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal
- Ministry of Health: responsible authorities
How these courses are built
Official sources only
Every legal and regulatory point comes from primary sources: the HPCA Act 2003, the responsible authorities' standards and the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights. Anything we cannot confirm is left out.
Original, edition by edition
Lessons, scenarios and assessment questions are written by us for each edition separately, then checked for accuracy, teaching quality and fair assessment before publication.
Reviewed when rules change
When a code, standard or law changes, the affected courses are reviewed and updated. Reported errors in legal or regulatory facts are corrected first.