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Profession-specific course

Ethics and Professionalism for Chinese Medicine Practitioners in Australia

Applying the Chinese Medicine Board's Code to Herbs, Acupuncture, Consent and Records

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

Written for

About this course

Chinese medicine practitioners in Australia work under a demanding set of rules: the shared Code of conduct, the Chinese Medicine Board's guidelines on safe herbal practice and infection prevention, revised patient health records guidelines from January 2026, Ahpra's advertising rules, and Commonwealth law on therapeutic goods, privacy and endangered species. Most notifications about practitioners do not involve bad intentions. They arise from gaps between good clinical skill and these standards: a consent conversation that skipped a material risk, a label that used a regional herb name, a cupping tool that could not be cleaned properly, or a website that promised too much.

This course brings those standards together in one place and applies them to the situations acupuncturists, Chinese herbal medicine practitioners and dispensers actually face. It explains what the Board expects, why it matters to patients, and what good practice looks like, using Australian case illustrations, practical tables and plain-language scripts.

You will finish with a clearer picture of where your own practice stands, a reflective account you can keep with your CPD records, and a set of changes you can make straight away to your consent process, herbal dispensing, infection control, advertising and records.

Who this course is for

  • Registered acupuncturists in private clinics, multidisciplinary practices or hospitals
  • Chinese herbal medicine practitioners who prescribe raw herbs, granules or patent medicines
  • Registered Chinese herbal dispensers and the practitioners who supervise dispensing assistants
  • Practitioners holding more than one division who want to check their practice across each
  • Clinic owners responsible for advertising, infection control plans and staff training
  • Overseas-trained practitioners adjusting to Australian regulatory expectations
  • Practitioners preparing for a return to practice or reviewing their practice after a concern was raised

What you’ll learn

  • Obtain consent that stands up

    Tailor risk discussions to each patient and modality, including herb-drug interactions, cupping marks and pneumothorax, and explain costs before treatment.

  • Prescribe and dispense traceably

    Write prescriptions and labels using authorised pinyin, supervise assistants, manage scheduled and prohibited herbs, and report adverse events to the TGA.

  • Run a safe treatment room

    Apply the 2023 infection prevention guidelines to needles, hand hygiene, sharps, cups and scrapers, and respond well when something goes wrong.

  • Advertise and record with confidence

    Check advertising for testimonials and unsupported claims, and keep records that meet the 2026 guidelines and privacy law.

Learning objectives

  • Explain the divisions of the Chinese medicine register, the protected titles and the rules on holding out.
  • Identify the codes, guidelines and registration standards that apply to Chinese medicine practice and how they are used in notifications.
  • Apply ethical principles to integrating Chinese medicine with patients' conventional medical care, including honesty about evidence.
  • Obtain informed and financial consent that addresses the material risks of acupuncture, related practices and herbal medicines.
  • Prescribe, label and dispense Chinese herbal medicines in line with the Board's guidelines, including scheduled, prohibited and endangered substances.
  • Apply infection prevention and control requirements to acupuncture, cupping, gua sha and moxibustion, and respond appropriately to injury.
  • Maintain professional boundaries, communicate across cultures and practise in a culturally safe way.
  • Advertise a Chinese medicine service lawfully, without testimonials, specialist claims or unsupported therapeutic claims.
  • Keep patient health records that meet the Board's 2026 guidelines and protect patient privacy.
  • Recognise and manage commercial conflicts of interest arising from supplying the products you prescribe.

Scenarios covered

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

  • The patient who wants to stop warfarin

    A patient asks for herbs to replace his anticoagulant. Work through the interaction risks, how to decline safely, and how to communicate with his cardiologist.

  • Breathlessness after upper-back needling

    A slim patient calls with chest pain hours after treatment. Learn how to respond, what to document, and how open disclosure works in practice.

  • An unidentified batch of mu tong

    A supplier offers cheap stock with no identification. Understand why substitution with prohibited Aristolochia species makes this a serious safety question.

  • The website that lists cancer and MS

    Review a clinic website against the Ahpra advertising guidelines and rewrite disease lists, fertility claims and "specialist" wording.

  • Records in two languages

    Apply the 2026 patient health records guidelines to a practitioner with an English language condition, including referrals and translation tools.

  • Sales targets for a branded tonic

    Consider how Ahpra's 2026 interim guidance on commercial conflicts of interest applies when a clinic rewards product sales.

Course contents

8 sections, 34 lessons, then the final assessment.

  1. Section 1: The Regulatory Landscape for Chinese Medicine4 lessons
    • 1.1 Registration, Divisions and Protected Titles
    • 1.2 The Board's Codes, Guidelines and Registration Standards
    • 1.3 Notifications, Ahpra and the Co-regulatory States
    • 1.4 Everyday Obligations of Registration
  2. Section 2: Ethical Foundations: Integrating Two Traditions4 lessons
    • 2.1 Professional Values in Chinese Medicine and in the Code
    • 2.2 Evidence, Tradition and Honesty
    • 2.3 Working Alongside Conventional Medical Care
    • 2.4 A Practical Approach to Ethical Dilemmas
  3. Section 3: Informed Consent for Acupuncture and Herbal Treatment5 lessons
    • 3.1 What Valid Consent Requires
    • 3.2 Material Risks of Acupuncture and Related Practices
    • 3.3 Material Risks of Chinese Herbal Medicine
    • 3.4 Consent Across Language, Culture and Capacity
    • 3.5 Fees, Treatment Courses and Financial Consent
  4. Section 4: Safe Practice of Chinese Herbal Medicine5 lessons
    • 4.1 The Guidelines for Safe Practice of Chinese Herbal Medicine
    • 4.2 Prescriptions, Nomenclature and Labelling
    • 4.3 Scheduled, Toxic, Prohibited and Substituted Herbs
    • 4.4 Dispensing, Assistants and Patent Medicines
    • 4.5 Adverse Events, Endangered Species and Supply Ethics
  5. Section 5: Acupuncture and Related Practices: Infection Prevention and Physical Safety4 lessons
    • 5.1 The Infection Prevention and Control Framework
    • 5.2 Needles, Hand Hygiene and Sharps
    • 5.3 Cupping, Gua Sha, Moxibustion and Reusable Equipment
    • 5.4 Recognising and Responding to Injury and Incidents
  6. Section 6: Boundaries, Communication and Cultural Safety4 lessons
    • 6.1 Professional Boundaries in Hands-on Practice
    • 6.2 Communication Across Cultures and Languages
    • 6.3 Culturally Safe Practice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Patients
    • 6.4 Commercial Conflicts of Interest
  7. Section 7: Advertising, Titles and Therapeutic Claims4 lessons
    • 7.1 The Legal Framework for Advertising Chinese Medicine
    • 7.2 Claims About Conditions and Outcomes
    • 7.3 Testimonials, Reviews and Social Media
    • 7.4 Titles, "Dr" and Qualifications
  8. Section 8: Records, Privacy and Accountability4 lessons
    • 8.1 The 2026 Guidelines on Patient Health Records
    • 8.2 Privacy, Retention, Translation Tools and AI
    • 8.3 Mandatory Notifications and Practitioner Health
    • 8.4 Accountability, Reflection and Continuous Improvement
  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
  • A written reflective account on your own practice, based on three course-specific prompts
  • A quick-reference guide covering registration, consent, herbs, acupuncture, advertising, records and conflicts of interest
  • Self-audit tables you can reuse for records, infection control and advertising reviews

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 the Chinese Medicine Board?

No. This is independent continuing education: not accredited, not approved and not endorsed by Ahpra, the Chinese Medicine Board of Australia or any professional body. You record the time you actually spend against your own CPD plan and decide whether the course meets your learning needs.

How many CPD hours can I record?

The course is designed for about 3 hours of learning, including the reflective account and the 20-question assessment. Record the time you genuinely spend, which may differ from the estimate.

Does it cover both acupuncture and herbal medicine?

Yes. It covers consent, safety and infection prevention for acupuncture and related practices, and prescribing, labelling, dispensing and adverse event reporting for Chinese herbal medicines, along with advertising, records and conflicts of interest that apply to every division.

Does it include the 2026 patient health records guidelines?

Yes. It explains the revised guidelines that took effect on 1 January 2026, including the English-language requirements for practitioners with English language conditions and the rules on referrals and translation.

Can I use this course if I have conditions on my registration?

It may support your learning, but only the Board can say whether a course satisfies a condition or undertaking. Check with Ahpra and the Board, and with your lawyer or insurer, before relying on any course for that purpose.

Is the course suitable for Chinese herbal dispensers?

Yes. The herbal medicine section covers dispensing responsibilities, supervision of assistants, nomenclature and labelling, and the handling of patent medicines in detail.

What is the pass mark for the assessment?

You need 16 out of 20 (80%) on scenario-based multiple-choice questions. The questions are based on the course content, so completing the lessons is the best preparation.

How long do I have to complete it?

The course is self-paced. You can work through the sections in one sitting or over several sessions, and your reflective notes are stored on your own device.