Ethics and professionalism CPD for podiatrists in Australia

Podiatry sits at an unusual crossroads. In a single day you may assess a neuropathic foot in a residential aged care facility, perform a partial nail avulsion under local anaesthetic, prescribe a scheduled medicine under your endorsement, and recommend custom orthoses that your own clinic sells. Each of those roles carries a different kind of ethical pressure, and generic professionalism training rarely addresses all of them.

Podiatrists and podiatric surgeons are registered by the Podiatry Board of Australia under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, supported by Ahpra. The National Law makes protection of the public, and public confidence in the safety of services, the paramount consideration. That shapes how a Board looks at your decisions: the question is not whether you meant well, but whether patients were kept safe and whether trust in the profession was affected.

This page explains the standards that apply to you, the areas where concerns about podiatrists most often arise, and which of our courses and programs fit those risks. Practitioner Ethics is an independent education provider. We are not affiliated with Ahpra or the Podiatry Board, our courses are not accredited and not approved by them, and you decide whether a course fits your own CPD plan.

Your individual scope of practice is narrower than the profession's. It is the part of podiatry in which you are currently educated, trained and competent. A podiatrist who last performed a chemical matrixectomy as a student, or who has not managed an active diabetes-related ulcer for years, should not assume competence simply because the activity sits within general podiatric scope.

Medicines add a second layer. The endorsement for scheduled medicines shows the Board is satisfied you hold an approved qualification, but the medicines you may actually prescribe, supply or administer depend on the drugs and poisons law of the state or territory where the patient is treated. Local anaesthetic authority also differs between jurisdictions. If you move interstate, provide locum cover across a border or review patients by telehealth in another state, check the law where the patient is, not where you trained. Patients should also know that podiatrist prescriptions are generally not subsidised through the PBS, so cost belongs in the consent conversation.

Podiatric surgery is under particular scrutiny. Expect questions about whether surgery was clinically indicated, whether conservative options were genuinely offered, whether the patient had time and plain-language information to decide, and whether after-hours postoperative care was planned in advance. General podiatrists providing aftercare share responsibility for escalating signs of infection, deep vein thrombosis or neurovascular compromise without delay. Our safe prescribing course for Schedule 8 and high-risk medicines and prescribing standards and safe medicines practice suit endorsed podiatrists building their prescribing CPD.

Ethics and Professionalism for Podiatrists in Australia is an estimated three hours of self-paced learning with podiatry case illustrations, reflection points, a written reflective account and a 20-question scenario assessment (pass mark 16 out of 20). It covers:

• how the National Law, the Podiatry Board and Ahpra regulate podiatrists and podiatric surgeons, including the co-regulatory systems in New South Wales and Queensland
• general scope, the endorsement for scheduled medicines, specialist registration and where state medicines law adds further limits
• valid consent for nail surgery and other procedures, including for children and for aged care residents with impaired capacity
• red flags in the high-risk foot and how to escalate them the same day
• the 2026 infection prevention and health records guidance, privacy and clinical photographs
• billing Medicare, DVA, the NDIS and health funds, product sales, conflicts of interest and lawful advertising
• boundaries on home visits, mandatory notifications, your own health and responding to a concern

If you work mainly in aged care or community health, pair it with clinical competence and patient safety. If you own a clinic, the advertising course and probity and financial integrity address the commercial side in more depth.

The Podiatry Board's CPD registration standard asks you to plan your learning against your own scope of practice, complete a minimum number of hours each registration year, and keep a plan, a log, evidence and reflections. Podiatrists who hold the endorsement for scheduled medicines must complete additional hours related to medicines, and podiatric surgeons complete further hours related to surgical practice. Activities should come from more than one type and include interactive learning with other practitioners. Current CPR training is required separately and does not count towards CPD hours. Check the exact figures in the standard in force at each renewal, because the National Boards have consulted on changes to CPD and recency standards.

Our courses are self-paced individual learning, so they contribute to the individual component of your plan rather than the interactive one. Learning is most useful when it changes something you can point to: an escalation pathway on the wall, a revised nail surgery consent template, an orthoses prescribing audit, or a website cleaned of testimonials. Each course ends with a reflective account you can keep with your certificate.

The free CPD hours planner helps you map a year, and the CPD Portfolio keeps your plan, log, certificates and reflections in one place for audit. Buying several courses at once? Bulk pricing applies automatically at five and ten courses.