The New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission (commonly referred to as the 'HCCC'), is an independent statutory body created by the Parliament of New South Wales, Australia to receive, assess, resolve or prosecute complaints relating to health service providers in New South Wales.
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Purpose
The Health Care Complaints Commission's purpose is stated in the Health Care Complaints Act which establishes it as "protection of the health and safety of the public must be the paramount consideration".
The Commission receives consistent media attention for its actions. Recent attention includes criticism of its performance with a major Sydney newspaper, the Sydney Morning Herald, reporting that new "statistics expos[ed] a dramatic decline in investigations despite complaints from the public being at an all-time high."
History
The Health Care Complaints Commission was formed in 1994 after the Chelmsford Royal Commission which investigated the 'deep sleep therapy' performed at the Chelmsford Hospital in Sydney.