Incident reporting in aged care NZ — what to document and when
Ngā Paerewa NZS 8134:2021Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001Updated April 2026⚡ Live legislation content
Quick answer
All adverse events must be logged. Level 3+ incidents require a formal incident report within 24 hours. Serious incidents (Level 4–5) require a critical incident report and may require Section 31 notification to HealthCERT.
Incident escalation matrix
Level
Description
Required action
Level 1
No harm, no near-miss
No report required
Level 2
Minor incident, no injury
Log in register
Level 3
Potential for harm (falls, medication errors, near-misses)
Incident report within 24 hours
Level 4
Serious harm — hospitalisation
Critical incident report; Section 31 assessment; family notification
Level 5
Death, serious assault, significant abuse
All Level 4 plus possible police notification
⚠️
Stick to facts in incident reports
Incident reports are legal documents. Record only what you observed — not what you think caused it. "Resident found on floor at 0300" not "resident fell because the rails weren't up."
Your staff complete incident reports at 3am under pressure.
Give them instant access to your incident reporting procedure — no searching, no waiting.
Under the Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001, notify HealthCERT in writing for serious incidents including:
Unexpected or service-related deaths
Falls resulting in serious injury (fracture, hospitalisation)
Allegations of physical or sexual abuse by staff
Events representing a systemic failure
When in doubt — notify. HealthCERT prefers over-notification.
Critical incidents — 2-hour rule
Level 4–5 events require a critical incident report to the Clinical/Residential Life Manager within 2 hours, subject line: CRITICAL — [Facility] — [Date].
💡
Auditors check incident data trends
HealthCERT auditors look at patterns across your data — falls at the same time, same location, same resident are red flags. Incident data must drive care plan reviews, not just fill a register.
Common questions
The staff member who witnessed or found the incident. Complete on the same shift where possible. A nurse or senior staff member should review all Level 3+ reports.
Incident reports form part of the clinical record. Under the Privacy Act and HDC Code of Rights, residents have rights to access their health information. Seek legal advice before withholding.
A near-miss is an event that could have caused harm but didn't. Under Ngā Paerewa, near-misses should be reported for safety learning.
Assess the resident, notify the prescribing doctor, complete an incident report at the appropriate level. Medication error patterns are a core focus of HealthCERT audits.
What happens when staff ask this question at 11pm?
"A resident had a fall — I'm not sure if it's a Section 31. What are the thresholds?"
After-hours RN — 2am, deciding before leaving shift
This article covers incident reporting under Ngā Paerewa and the Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001. Always follow your facility's specific protocols.