20 December 2024
James Anderson
By email:
[FYI request #29339 email]
Tēnā koe Mr Anderson
Re:
Information request
Our ref:
E24HDC01556
Thank you for your email
of
26 November 2024 requesting:
“1) How many FTE are included as part of the HDC Cultural Team?
2) What the salary bands and qualifications are for each member of the
Cultural Team?
3) What are the Cultural Team's individual and collective key performance
indicators and performance measures - and whether these have been achieved
in the last three financial years?
4) Data as to what the Cultural Team's contribution to the resolution of
complaints has been since their inception and whether the evidence supports
that their involvement has positively or negatively impacted the speed and
efficiency of complaints resolution.
5) Please provide evidence to show the average time complaints referred to
the Cultural Team take to resolve compared to complaints of a similar level of
complexity and seriousness.
6) Please provide evidence of how many complaints the Cultural Team have
worked on which have involved Maori people compared to the number of
complaints they have worked on involving other ethnic minority groups
7) Please provide evidence of the total travel and accommodation
expenditures of the Cultural Team since their formation and the justification
and business purpose of their travel - including evidence of the intended and
actual outcomes of each external engagement.
Auckland Office: P O Box 1791 Auckland 1140; Wel ington Office (new address): PO Box 245, Wel ington 6140
Freephone: 0800 11 22 33; Email: [Health and Disability Commissioner request email]; Website: www.hdc.org.nz
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8) Please provide evidence of a cost benefit analysis of the Cultural Team and
how their costs are justified by their output and contribution
9) Please provide a copy of the written process for complaints
management/resolution that is fol owed by the Cultural Team and what
statutory delegated powers each member of the team is employing as part of
their complaints management work
10) Please provide details of whether HDC/the Cultural Team has paid parties
to a complaint to engage in complaint related hui - for the avoidance of doubt
- payment does not relate solely to exchange of money but includes, but is not
limited to the provision of food or petrol costs.”
We have considered your request under the Official Information Act 1982.
Please find the information requested below and attached.
Question 1
We have interpreted your request as relating to members of HDC’s Māori Directorate
team.
FTE Māori Directorate by year
May 2022
1.5 FTE
(1 FTE Director Māori, 0.5 FTE
administrative support)
2023
3.5 FTE
(1 FTE Director Māori, 0.5 FTE
administrative support, 2 FTE Senior
Advisor Māori)
2024
3 FTE
(1 FTE Director Māori, 2FTE Senior
Advisor Māori)
Question 2
Salary bands for Māori Directorate as at 20 December 2024
Job title
Band
80%
120%
Director Māori
19
134,640
201,960
Senior
Advisor 16
80,930
121,396
Māori/
Pacific
(Aged Care)
Executive Assistant 15
69,125
103,687
(this
role
is
currently vacant)
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Qualifications
The qualifications and skills required for the roles are contained in the job descriptions
attached.
Question 3
Details of the roles and responsibilities required of members of HDC’s Māori
Directorate team (considered to be their KPIs) are contained in the job descriptions,
attached. HDC’s performance measures are set out in HDC’s Statement of
Performance Expectations and our Annual Report. This includes our key performance
measures in relation to Māori communities which the Māori Directorate contribute
to. However, it is important to note that all staff at HDC contribute to the collective
performance of HDC, and no measure is the responsibility of one team alone.
For our collective performance measures see the Statement of Expectations:
https://www.hdc.org.nz/about-us/corporate-publications/statement-of-
performance-expectations/. Information about the performance/outcomes of HDC
can also be found in HDC’s annual reports.
Question 4
HDC does not specifical y track al activity undertaken by the Māori Directorate.
Collating this information would require HDC to go individually through each
complaint received by HDC to ascertain whether the Māori Directorate provided
support during the complaints process. Accordingly, we refuse this aspect of your
request under section 18(f) of the Official Information Act. We do not consider that
extending the time limit under Section 15A or fixing a charge will enable this aspect of
your request to be granted.
Further information about the role of the Māori Directorate team in the resolution of
complaints can be found in HDC’s annual reports, including information about how
hui-ā-whānau contributes to people’s experience of the complaints process.
Question 5
HDC does not specifical y track al activity undertaken by the Māori Directorate.
Collating this information would require HDC to go individually through each
complaint received by HDC to ascertain whether the Māori Directorate provided
support during the complaints process. Accordingly, we refuse this aspect of your
request under section 18(f) of the Official Information Act. We do not consider that
extending the time limit under Section 15A or fixing a charge will enable this aspect of
your request to be granted.
Question 6
HDC does not specifical y track al activity undertaken by the Māori Directorate.
Collating this information would require HDC to go individually through each
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complaint received by HDC to ascertain whether the Māori Directorate provided
support during the complaints process, and the ethnicity of participants in that
process. Accordingly, we refuse this aspect of your request under section 18(f) of the
Official Information Act. We do not consider that extending the time limit under
Section 15A or fixing a charge will enable this aspect of your request to be granted.
Question 7
Total Travel and Accommodation costs of members of the Māori Directorate Team by
year
Fiscal Year
Travel and Accommodation ($)
2021/22
881
2022/23
21,392
2023/24
23,709
2024/25 (1 July to 31 October 2024)
1,918
Total
47,900
As noted in our answers to previous questions, the Māori Directorate is an integral
part of HDC’s team and works alongside other teams to support HDCs purpose and
performance. When HDC staff undertake travel they do so in accordance with HDC’s
travel policy. As is the case with all staff at HDC, there is an expectation that when
travelling, staff members will use the time effectively and efficiently to attend multiple
meetings or engagements. All travel undertaken is to support the purpose and
functions of HDC.
Examples of purposes of travel include providing support to the consultation of HDC’s
Act & Code Review (which is a legislative requirement for HDC), supporting the Aged
Care Commissioner at her engagements (a requirement of the Aged Care
Commissioner’s role), hui ā-whānau to support complaints resolution, and providing
training for HDC staff.
Collating information about every engagement would require HDC to go individually
through each team member’s trips over a period of over three years, all meetings, and
engagements and other work undertaken to ascertain which were external
engagements, and all associated information (as noted above each trip is often used
to support multiple engagements). Accordingly, we refuse this aspect of your request
under section 18(f) of the Official Information Act. We do not consider that extending
the time limit under Section 15A or fixing a charge will enable this aspect of your
request to be granted.
Question 8
We refuse this aspect of your request pursuant to section 18(e) of the Official
Information Act as the document alleged to contain the information requested does
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not exist. However, you might like to review our Annual Report and the Statement of
Performance Expectations which are also referenced in the answers above.
https://www.hdc.org.nz/media/snsao2k2/hdc_annualreport_20241125_v18_
web.pdf
https://www.hdc.org.nz/media/t0sjtfif/statement-of-performance-
expectations-2024-25-update.pdf
Question 9
We do not hold a document for a cultural process. However below is a description of
our tikanga led process within HDC complaints resolution:
- Fol owing the triage of a complaint by a statutory decision-maker, the Māori
Directorate may be contacted for input.
- Cultural needs and values are considered and complaint resolution pathways
discussed within Māori Directorate team (e.g., mātauranga Māori steer
and/or proceed with hui ā-whānau, or team involvement not needed).
- If a hui ā-whānau process is initiated, the complainant is invited to meet in
person or via Teams to discuss their complaint. This hui provides the
opportunity for whānau (i.e., the complainant and/or the consumer and who
they determine their whānau support to be) to be heard and acknowledged,
and determine what resolution looks like for them.
- Hui ā-whānau date, time and venue (i.e, online or in-person) is scheduled to
the availability of the whānau. Availability includes and is not limited to
afterhours e.g., 5pm on weekdays and any reasonable time in the weekend.
- Whānau voice and experience is recorded in support of their tino
rangatiratanga being acknowledged within HDC processes such as s14,
Provisional Opinion (PO), Final Opinion (FO) or any other process required.
- Hohou te rongo process led by tikanga Māori is initiated. Whānau aspirations
for resolution is facilitated between the whānau and the provider by the
Māori Directorate to ensure the space for al is safe ā-wairua, ā-tinana, ā-
hinengaro and ā-whānau.
- Whānau resolution achieved.
- Recommendations made (if any)
- File closed by HDC’s Complaints Assessment Team.
In addition, there may be other aspects of the complaint that need to be addressed
by the HDC complaints assessment process (for example, resolution being achieved
through hui-ā-whānau would not preclude any serious systemic issues identified
from being investigated by HDC).
Members of the Māori Directorate team are not decision-makers on complaints, and
do not hold any statutory delegations.
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Relevant information is included in the fol owing documents:
2022 Annual Report - https://www.hdc.org.nz/media/gu5l4i d/hdc-annual-
report-2022.pdf
2023 Annual Report - https://www.hdc.org.nz/media/wzpdch0g/hdc-annual-
report-2023.pdf
2023/24
Statement
of
Performance
Expectations
-
https://www.hdc.org.nz/media/kmgnvawu/statement-of-performance-
expectations-2023-2024.pdf
Case study - https://www.hdc.org.nz/decisions/case-studies-nga-matai-
take/culturally-appropriate-care-making-recommendations-and-tailoring-
our-approach-to-meet-the-needs-of-whanau/
Media release - https://www.hdc.org.nz/media/si1goudc/20hdc00719media-
release.pdf
Question 10
No parties have been paid to engage in complaint-related hui by the Māori
Directorate.
You may seek a review of this decision from the Office of the Ombudsman.
Nāku iti noa, nā
Dr Craig Goodwillie
OIA Team Leader
Enc
PD- Kaitohu Māori-Director Māori
Senior-advisor-Māori-Pasifika-aged-care-position-description
