Times they are changing… again!
31 October 2025
We’re pleased to share some exciting changes within the HealthyPractice team!
After a brief time leading the team, Peter Lycett has stepped into a new opportunity as Business Development Manager at MAS. In this role, Peter will be exploring new areas for growth opportunities including group life and insurance schemes. If you think your practice might be interested, then feel free to email him!
We’re equally thrilled to introduce our new manager, Hayden Saunders. Hayden joined MAS in September 2022 and has been a key part of our internal People and Culture team, serving as Head of HR Business Partnering. He brings a deep well of expertise in HR and employment relations, nd is based at our corporate head office in Wellington alongside the rest of the team. Hayden is eager to dive into the diverse range of queries we receive and support the HealthyPractice community.
With Fiona’s departure to enjoy her retirement, we are now looking to complete our team once again. We’re currently on the lookout for a Human Resources Coordinator to join us. We are after someone who is able to relate to our subscribers and the industry challenges they face, so if this sounds like a role that sparks your interest, send us through an expression of interest to business@mas.co.nz and we can provide some more info.
Closedown Periods – Christmas and New Year
As we approach the Christmas and New Year holiday period, we are receiving enquiries regarding practice closures between the statutory public holidays.
Some businesses observe an annual closedown during this time. If your practice customarily closes each year, this is considered an annual closedown under the Holidays Act. Employment agreements should include a clause outlining your obligations, including:
- The required notice period for closedown
- How annual leave entitlements are applied
- What happens if an employee has insufficient or no annual leave available
You can find detailed guidance on this topic here: Close down periods.
If your practice does not typically close during this period but you are considering doing so this year, you must consult with your staff. If agreement cannot be reached, you may direct employees to take entitled annual leave with at least 14 days’ notice. However, if employees do not have sufficient leave, you may be required to pay them for the days the practice is closed.
Annual Holidays
With summer approaching, many staff will be planning their annual leave. For managers, this can be a balancing act between accommodating leave requests and maintaining adequate staffing levels to ensure service delivery.
Annual holidays should generally be taken by mutual agreement. During peak periods such as Christmas and Easter, it’s important to have a fair and transparent process for managing leave requests. We recommend implementing a leave policy and a formal application process. Sample templates are available here: Annual holidays – Annual holidays.
Calculating holiday pay for permanent employees can be complex. The correct rate is the greater of:
- The employee’s ordinary weekly pay, or
- Their average weekly earnings over the past 12 months
Please note that different rules apply for employees returning from parental leave. More information is available here: Annual holidays.
Other recent articles
10 June 2026
Privacy updates and training
Due to recent changes, this month we wish to remind you of the update to the Privacy Act 2020 with a new principle called the Information Privacy Principle 3A (IPP3A). For practices’, the new principle means there are additional notification obligations when receiving personal information about a patient from a third party. Under IPP3A, if your practice receives patient information from another provider (such as a lab, hospital, specialist, pharmacy or ACC), you must take reasonable steps to let the patient know their information has been collected. This change applies to any information collected on or after 1st May 2026.
15 May 2026
Welcome Winter!
Winter is on the way, and with it usually comes the usual run of coughs, colds, and other bugs. Most practices will already have their usual measures in place but now is a good time to reinforce the basics and lead by example, particularly when it comes to staying home if you’re unwell. It is also a good time to check that expectations around leave, sick leave and wellbeing are clear heading into winter.
16 April 2026
Easing fuel and living-cost pressures, in practice
While we cannot control the wider economic environment, making clear, practical decisions in response to the current economic pressures can ease the load on our practice and our staff. Rising fuel prices and the broader cost-of-living pressure are not only having financial implications, they are also impacting how we feel about normal day-to-day ‘necessities’, which may be affecting stress levels and causing rising anxiety for some. It is important to focus on what we can change – how we can make small adjustments to support staff, reduce avoidable stress and keep the practice functioning well. own.
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