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In-depth topic course

Sexual Boundaries and Preventing Sexual Misconduct in Australian Healthcare

Recognising Grooming, Protecting Patients and Responding to Concerns

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

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About this course

Sexual misconduct rarely starts with a single dramatic act. It usually grows from small, explainable steps: an extended appointment, a personal message, a compliment, an examination that goes further than it needed to. Practitioners who end up before panels and tribunals often say they did not see where things were heading. Patients who are harmed often take years to speak, and many lose trust in health care altogether.

Regulation has also changed. Since December 2025 it is an offence to retaliate against people who raise concerns, and agreements cannot stop anyone complaining to Ahpra. Since April 2026, tribunal findings of professional misconduct involving sexual misconduct are published permanently on the public register, going back to 2010. Every practitioner needs a clear, practical understanding of where the boundaries are and how to protect them.

This course gives you that understanding. It works through the power imbalance, grooming patterns, consent for intimate care, relationships with former patients and families, harassment of colleagues, disclosures and mandatory notifications, using realistic Australian scenarios from many professions. You finish with scripts, checklists and a personal prevention plan you can use straight away.

Who this course is for

  • Registered practitioners in any of the National Scheme professions who want a clear, current refresher on sexual boundaries
  • Practitioners whose work involves intimate examinations, personal care or prolonged touch, such as physiotherapists, nurses, osteopaths, chiropractors and radiographers
  • Psychologists, counsellors and mental health clinicians managing emotional intimacy and transference
  • Practitioners in rural, remote and small-community settings where personal and professional lives overlap
  • Clinical leaders, practice owners and managers responsible for policies, culture and responding to concerns
  • Practitioners asked to reflect on boundaries after feedback, a complaint or a notification (check with your Board whether a course is suitable)

What you’ll learn

  • Recognise the slippery slope

    Identify boundary crossings, violations and grooming behaviours in yourself, colleagues and your workplace, and act early.

  • Deliver intimate care safely

    Use a clear consent and observer routine, protect dignity and document intimate and close-contact care in a way that protects patients and you.

  • Manage relationships and attraction

    Apply the rules for current and former patients and people close to them, and take safe steps when attraction arises.

  • Respond to concerns with confidence

    Support people who disclose, meet mandatory notification duties, understand the 2025 and 2026 reforms and know where to find help.

Learning objectives

  • Explain why the practitioner alone is responsible for sexual boundaries and why patient consent is not a defence.
  • Identify the National Law provisions, codes and guidance that set sexual boundaries for Australian practitioners.
  • Distinguish boundary crossings from violations and recognise warning signs in your own behaviour.
  • Recognise grooming of patients, families, colleagues and organisations.
  • Conduct intimate and close-contact care with informed consent, dignity and appropriate observers.
  • Apply regulators' factors to relationships with former patients and people close to patients.
  • Respond to sexual harassment and sexualised patient behaviour safely.
  • Respond to disclosures in a trauma-informed way and meet mandatory notification obligations.
  • Describe recent National Law reforms and build a personal and team prevention plan.

Scenarios covered

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

  • The end-of-day patient

    A chiropractor realises he keeps booking a recently separated patient into the last Friday slot and talking about his own divorce. You will work through the warning signs and the steps that restore the boundary before harm occurs.

  • Secret calls on the youth unit

    A nurse sees a popular colleague take a teenage patient into a closed office and tell her to keep their calls secret. You will apply grooming indicators, child safety duties and notification thresholds.

  • Pelvic floor assessment

    A physiotherapist prepares for an internal assessment. You will build a consent sequence that covers explanation, alternatives, observer offer, privacy, checking in and documentation.

  • The former patient at a community event

    An optometrist meets a former patient two years after a single eye test. You will weigh the factors regulators use and the advice he should take before any relationship.

  • A disclosure at the pharmacy counter

    A patient tells her pharmacist that a previous examination 'didn't feel right'. You will practise a trauma-informed response and check whether a mandatory notification is required.

  • An NDA to keep it quiet

    A practice owner wants a staff member to sign an agreement not to contact Ahpra. You will see why this is now an offence and what the organisation must do instead.

Course contents

8 sections, 31 lessons, then the final assessment.

  1. Section 1: Why Sexual Boundaries Matter4 lessons
    • 1.1 Power, Trust and the Therapeutic Relationship
    • 1.2 The Standards That Apply to You
    • 1.3 What Counts as Sexual Misconduct
    • 1.4 The Harm Caused by Sexual Misconduct
  2. Section 2: Boundary Crossings, Violations and Warning Signs4 lessons
    • 2.1 Crossings and Violations
    • 2.2 Warning Signs in Your Own Behaviour
    • 2.3 Risk Factors: Practitioner, Patient and Setting
    • 2.4 Self-Disclosure, Gifts and Blurred Roles
  3. Section 3: Recognising Grooming4 lessons
    • 3.1 What Grooming Looks Like in Health Care
    • 3.2 Common Grooming Behaviours
    • 3.3 Children, Young People and Families
    • 3.4 Digital Contact and Online Grooming
  4. Section 4: Intimate and Close-Contact Care Done Safely4 lessons
    • 4.1 What Makes an Examination or Procedure Intimate
    • 4.2 Consent Before and During Intimate Care
    • 4.3 Privacy, Dignity and Professional Conduct During Examinations
    • 4.4 Observers, Support Persons and Profession-Specific Practice
  5. Section 5: Relationships with Patients, Former Patients and Those Close to Them4 lessons
    • 5.1 Current Patients: A Clear Line
    • 5.2 Former Patients
    • 5.3 People Close to a Patient
    • 5.4 When Attraction Arises
  6. Section 6: Sexual Harassment, Colleagues and Conduct Outside Practice3 lessons
    • 6.1 Sexual Harassment of Colleagues and Students
    • 6.2 When Patients Behave Sexually Towards Practitioners
    • 6.3 Conduct Outside Practice
  7. Section 7: Responding to Concerns4 lessons
    • 7.1 When a Patient Discloses or Complains
    • 7.2 Mandatory Notifications About Sexual Misconduct
    • 7.3 Other Reporting Pathways and Organisational Responsibilities
    • 7.4 Supporting People Affected
  8. Section 8: Regulatory Consequences and Prevention4 lessons
    • 8.1 How Regulators Handle Sexual Misconduct
    • 8.2 Recent Reforms: Transparency and Protection
    • 8.3 If You Are the Subject of an Allegation
    • 8.4 Building Personal and Team Safeguards
  9. Final assessment and written reflection20 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

    20 scenario-based questions. You need 16 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 3 CPD hours. Anyone can check it on our verification page.

What you keep for your CPD records

  • A certificate of completion recording approximately 3 CPD hours of learning
  • Your written reflective account, structured around three course-specific prompts
  • A quick-reference guide covering consent for intimate care, warning signs, notification thresholds and support lines
  • A personal prevention plan you can review with a supervisor or mentor

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

Is this course recognised by Ahpra or a National Board?

No. It is not accredited, not approved and not endorsed by Ahpra or any National Board. It is independent education. You record the time you actually spend and decide whether it fits your own CPD plan under your Board's CPD registration standard.

Can I ever have a relationship with a patient if they consent?

Not with a current patient. Every registered profession's code prohibits sexual relationships with current patients, and regulators do not accept consent as a defence because of the power imbalance in the professional relationship. Relationships with former patients are assessed on factors such as the type and length of care, vulnerability and time elapsed, and some are never acceptable.

Does this course cover all professions or just doctors?

It is written for all registered health practitioners. It uses the Medical Board's sexual boundaries guidelines as a detailed benchmark, alongside the shared Code of conduct and the nursing, midwifery and psychology codes, with scenarios from physiotherapy, nursing, pharmacy, radiography, paramedicine, optometry, chiropractic, dietetics and more.

What changed in 2025 and 2026?

From 1 December 2025 it became an offence to retaliate against people involved in a complaint, and non-disclosure agreements cannot stop a complaint to Ahpra. From 10 April 2026 tribunal findings of professional misconduct involving sexual misconduct are published permanently on the public register, back to 2010, and a nationally consistent reinstatement process applies.

When do I have to make a mandatory notification about sexual misconduct?

When, in the course of practising, you form a reasonable belief that another practitioner has engaged in sexual misconduct in connection with their practice. Different rules apply to treating practitioners and there are variations in Western Australia and Queensland, which the course explains.

Will this course satisfy a condition on my registration?

Only your Board can decide that. Education can support learning, but it does not by itself demonstrate insight or meet a condition. If you have a condition or undertaking, confirm with Ahpra or your Board, and with your lawyer or medical defence organisation, before you enrol.

How long does the course take and how is it assessed?

It is designed for about 3 hours of learning, including reflection. You complete 20 scenario-based multiple-choice questions with a pass mark of 16 out of 20, and write a short reflective account to keep with your certificate.

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