New Zealand Health and Disability System Safety Strategy (Health Quality & Safety Commission Te Tāhū Hauora, 23 June 2026)

Summary

The New Zealand Health and Disability System Safety Strategy sets a system wide direction for strengthening quality and safety as a foundation for people centred care in New Zealand. The strategy’s aim is to reduce potentially avoidable harm, build trust, and improve the quality and safety of the health and disability system for everyone in New Zealand.

It recognises health care as a complex, interconnected system where safety depends on how the system is designed, led and supported. The strategy supports active engagement with patients, whānau and communities so we can understand their experiences, whether services are meeting their needs, and where improvements can be made.

Content

Vision

A health and disability system that collectively supports safe, quality, people-centred care.

Guiding principles

• Patients and whānau at heart at the heart of the system
• Collaborative relationships across the system
• Building the capacity for learning and improvement
• Enabling and support the workforce

Focus areas

The Strategy responds to the aspects of the system that shape safety outcomes through five interconnected focus areas.

Alongside the principles, these focus areas articulate and reinforce the priority areas that underpin other key strategic health documents, such as the Government Policy Statement on Health 2024–2027 and the New Zealand Health Strategy. Together, they strengthen how the health and disability system works collectively to reduce harm and improve safety over time