NCSP Review

The National Cervical Screening Programme (NCSP) uses HPV testing as the primary screening test.

Visit the Te Whatu Ora website for current information about NCSP HPV Primary Screening:

https://www.tewhatuora.govt.nz/for-the-health-sector/ncsp-hpv-screening/...

The information below is provided only as archive reference material.

A parliamentary review committee is required every parliamentary term under Part 4A, section 112O of the Health Act, 1956. The National Cervical Screening Programme (NCSP) Review Committee is an independent body appointed by the Associate Minister of Health, whose statutory functions are to review:

• the operation of the NCSP
• evaluation activities of the kind described in section 112T of the Act that have been carried out or are proposed to be carried out.

The focus of the Review Committee is the continuous quality improvement of components of the NCSP, with a view to reducing the incidence and mortality rates of cervical cancer.

The full report and a summary of Te Whatu Ora’s response and next steps are now available at Parliamentary Review Committee Report 2021.

2021 Parliamentary Review Scope

As the NCSP is currently in transition to a new screening pathway, this review had a limited scope with primary focus on primary health care and colposcopy workforce readiness, quality assurance improvements and accessibility in an HPV primary screening setting to support equitable outcomes. This included:

• reviewing systems in place to monitor and improve primary health care and colposcopy services’ obligations to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and to achieving equitable outcomes for Māori and other at-risk groups and identifying opportunities for these services to improve equity of outcome across all population groups
• review the integration of community healthcare workers to primary care clinical services and on to colposcopy services within the current pathway
• provide recommendations to improve accessibility to screening and collaborative systems to bridge the gap between participants being screened and follow-up services
• assess workforce capacity to implement HPV primary screening
• report on the current state of clinical quality assurance in district health board (DHB) colposcopy services
• review the effectiveness of programme monitoring, evaluation, and governance.

The Associate Minister of Health appointed the following members:

• Dr Heather Came (Chair) – Heather has extensive experience and expertise in Te Tiriti o Waitangi, anti-racism and institutional racism in the health sector. She is an activist scholar with a commitment to applied research that disrupts institutional racism and strengthens application of te Tiriti o Waitangi. Prior to entering academic life her professional background was in health promotion and public health. Heather is a chair of the Auckland University of Technology branch of the NZ Public Health Association, founder member and co-chair of STIR: Stop Institutional Racism, a fellow of the Health Promotion Forum, a longstanding member of Tāmaki Tiriti Workers.
• Ms Liane Penney (Te Ngare Hauata, Te Hikutu) – Liane is the Director of Kiwikiwi Services Limited. She is a public health professional with expertise in Māori health and equity and has extensive experience in service innovation and change management, research, evaluation, and health service operational management. Liane has expertise in Māori health planning and development, and has been a member of many governance groups, expert panels and research committees, including the 2018 Parliamentary Review Committee of the NCSP.
• Dr Georgina McPherson (Kuki Ariani: Ngāti Kao, Ngāti Tane) – Georgina is a Nurse Practitioner with clinical and research experience in cervical screening and Pacific women’s health. She was the clinical lead for the colposcopy service at Waitematā DHB for a number of years and has over 20 years’ experience working as a colposcopist. She is currently on the ASCCP executive and has been involved in change management projects and quality initiatives aimed at improving access to care and improving health resource utilisation in colposcopy services.

The committee reached out to the sector to arrange interviews with providers and stakeholders to inform their review. These interviews took place throughout 2022.

More information about the previous 2018 parliamentary review is available here.