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Core course for every profession

Medical Ethics for Australian Practitioners: From Principles to Hard Cases

Autonomy, Beneficence, Justice and Hard Cases in Australian Healthcare

  • 2 CPD hoursEstimated learning time
  • 15-question assessmentPass mark 80%
  • Online, self-pacedStart any time
  • CertificateFor your CPD records

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About this course

Every clinical decision carries values. Most of the time those values sit quietly in the background, but sometimes they collide: a competent patient refuses treatment you believe would save their life, a family asks you not to tell a patient the truth, a team disagrees about continuing intensive care, a request conflicts with your conscience, or a scarce appointment must go to one patient rather than another. These are the moments that keep practitioners awake at night and, when handled poorly, lead to complaints and regret.

This course takes the four principles of clinical ethics (autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice) and applies them to the dilemmas Australian practitioners actually face. It explains the Australian law that shapes ethical choices, from the material risk standard in Rogers v Whitaker to mature minors under Marion's case, advance care directives, and the differing state and territory laws on voluntary assisted dying and conscientious objection. Each section works through realistic cases from hospitals, general practice, pharmacy, paramedicine and community care.

You finish with a quick ethical reasoning guide, phrases for difficult conversations, a checklist for documenting ethical decisions and a reflective account for your CPD record.

Who this course is for

  • Doctors, nurses, midwives, paramedics, pharmacists and allied health practitioners in any setting
  • Practitioners working in emergency, intensive, palliative, aged and community care
  • Clinicians who want a clearer framework for discussing ethical concerns with teams and families
  • Early-career practitioners building confidence with consent, capacity and end-of-life decisions
  • Supervisors and educators who teach clinical ethics informally on the ward
  • Practitioners who hold conscientious objections and want to manage them responsibly

What you’ll learn

  • Name the ethics in a decision

    Identify which principles are in tension and use that to work out what information and conversation are needed.

  • Apply Australian law with confidence

    Use the material risk standard, capacity principles, mature minor rules and advance care directives correctly.

  • Handle end-of-life and conscience questions

    Navigate VAD, withdrawal of treatment and conscientious objection within the law in your jurisdiction.

  • Decide well together

    Use team deliberation and ethics support, manage moral distress and document your reasoning clearly.

Learning objectives

  • Describe the four principles of biomedical ethics and other ethical lenses relevant to Australian practice.
  • Explain how ethics, Australian law and the codes of conduct interact.
  • Apply the material risk standard from Rogers v Whitaker to informed consent.
  • Assess capacity and respond ethically to competent refusals of treatment.
  • Navigate decisions for children, advance care directives and substitute decision-makers.
  • Weigh benefits and harms, handle non-beneficial treatment requests and communicate honestly.
  • Apply principles of justice and equity to everyday clinical and resource decisions.
  • Reason through end-of-life and reproductive dilemmas, including conscientious objection, within Australian law.
  • Use team deliberation, ethics support and documentation to manage hard cases.

Scenarios covered

Practice situations you reason through, step by step, in the course.

  • The refusal at home

    A competent older woman refuses admission for worsening heart failure while her daughter insists. You will assess capacity and respect her decision without abandoning her.

  • Everything must be done

    A family asks for every treatment for a mother with no prospect of meaningful recovery. You will work through non-beneficial treatment and compassionate communication.

  • Don't tell him

    Adult children ask you to hide a cancer diagnosis from their father. You will respect both culture and the patient's own right to information.

  • Two children, one directive

    Siblings disagree about intensive care for their father, whose advance care directive is clear. You will identify who holds authority and what guides the decision.

  • Stopping the ventilator

    A man with motor neurone disease asks to stop his ventilation. You will distinguish withdrawing treatment from voluntary assisted dying.

  • The Saturday request

    A pharmacist with a conscientious objection is asked for emergency contraception. You will manage the objection without blocking lawful access.

Course contents

6 sections, 24 lessons, then the final assessment.

  1. Section 1: Foundations of Clinical Ethics4 lessons
    • 1.1 Why Principles Matter at the Bedside
    • 1.2 Other Ethical Lenses
    • 1.3 Ethics, Law and the Codes of Conduct
    • 1.4 When Principles Collide
  2. Section 2: Autonomy in Practice: Consent, Capacity and Refusal4 lessons
    • 2.1 Informed Consent and Material Risk
    • 2.2 Capacity and the Right to Refuse
    • 2.3 Children and Young People
    • 2.4 Advance Care Planning and Substitute Decisions
  3. Section 3: Beneficence and Non-Maleficence: Benefit, Harm and Honesty4 lessons
    • 3.1 Best Interests and Proportionate Treatment
    • 3.2 Non-Beneficial Treatment and Requests for Everything
    • 3.3 Truth-Telling and Uncertainty
    • 3.4 Family Requests to Withhold Information
  4. Section 4: Justice: Fairness, Equity and Scarce Resources4 lessons
    • 4.1 Justice in Everyday Clinical Work
    • 4.2 Equity, Bias and Groups Facing Disadvantage
    • 4.3 Allocating Scarce Resources
    • 4.4 Fees, Access and Commercial Pressures
  5. Section 5: Hard Cases at the Beginning and End of Life4 lessons
    • 5.1 Voluntary Assisted Dying
    • 5.2 Withdrawing and Withholding Life-Sustaining Treatment
    • 5.3 Conscientious Objection
    • 5.4 Reproductive Decisions
  6. Section 6: Working Through Hard Cases Together4 lessons
    • 6.1 Deliberation in Teams
    • 6.2 Clinical Ethics Support
    • 6.3 Moral Distress and Practitioner Wellbeing
    • 6.4 Recording Ethical Reasoning
  7. Final assessment and written reflection15 questions

Assessment and certificate

  1. Work through the course

    Study each section at your own pace, including the case illustrations and apply-it questions.

  2. Pass the assessment

    15 scenario-based questions. You need 12 correct (80%) to pass.

  3. Write your reflection

    A short written reflection on how the learning applies to your own practice.

  4. Download your certificate

    Shows your name, the course, the date and 2 CPD hours. Anyone can check it on our verification page.

What you keep for your CPD records

  • A certificate of completion recording approximately 2 CPD hours of learning
  • A written reflective account on an ethical dilemma from your own practice
  • A one-page ethical reasoning guide for difficult decisions
  • A checklist for documenting ethically complex decisions

How certificates and CPD records workVerify a certificate

Primary sources

The course is built on these official documents. Check them for the current version.

Questions about this course

Does Ahpra or a National Board accredit this course?

No. This is independent education. It is not accredited by Ahpra, it is not approved by any National Board and it is not endorsed by any professional body. Under your Board's CPD registration standard you decide whether it fits your learning plan, and you record the time you actually spend.

Is this course only for doctors?

No. Despite the traditional title, medical ethics applies to every registered profession. The course uses cases involving nurses, midwives, paramedics, pharmacists and allied health practitioners as well as doctors.

Does it cover voluntary assisted dying?

Yes. It explains the status of VAD laws across Australia, the ethical debate, the difference between VAD and withdrawing treatment, and how conscientious objection operates. It does not train you to participate in VAD, which requires the mandatory training set by your jurisdiction's VAD law.

How is this different from a course on the Code of conduct?

This course focuses on ethical principles and hard cases: how to reason when values conflict. Courses on the Code of conduct focus on applying its specific provisions. The two complement each other.

Will it help with conversations with families?

Yes. It includes approaches and phrases for discussing non-beneficial treatment, prognosis, uncertainty and requests to withhold information, along with guidance on documenting those conversations.

How long does it take and how is it assessed?

It is designed for about 2 hours, including reading, activities, a reflective account and 15 scenario-based questions with a pass mark of 12 out of 15 (80%). Record the time you actually spend.

Does the course explain state and territory differences?

Yes, where they matter. Consent for young people, advance care directives, substitute decision-makers, abortion and voluntary assisted dying are all governed by state and territory law, and the course explains the common principles, gives examples of where jurisdictions differ and tells you what to check locally. It does not replace legal advice about a specific case.

What if I disagree with a colleague about an ethical decision?

Section 6 covers team deliberation, psychological safety, clinical ethics consultation and how to record dissent. Disagreement often signals genuine complexity, and the course shows you how to raise concerns constructively and where to seek support, including from your professional association or medical defence organisation.

Can I use it to meet a Board condition?

Not automatically. If you have a condition or undertaking, confirm with Ahpra or your Board, and your lawyer or medical defence organisation, whether this course is acceptable before relying on it.

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