COURSE OVERVIEW
The Professional Certificate of Clinical Procedures provides the clinician with intermediate level knowledge including the ability to understand and manage a variety of common problems that require office-based surgical intervention, such as foreign body removal, lacerations, sebaceous cysts and ingrown toenails. The program is suitable for GPs, overseas trained doctors, newly arrived doctors seeking to work in rural networks, nurse practitioners and VR doctors who wish to further develop their surgical office-based knowledge. The program is approved for the Rural Procedural grant program.
Professional Certificate of Clinical Procedures |
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ENTRY REQUIREMENTS AND COURSE REQUISITES
The Professional Certificate of Clinical Procedures is ideal for medical professionals, overseas trained doctors, nurse practitioners and VR doctors who wish to further their surgical office-based knowledge by gaining an intermediate level understanding of a variety of common problems requiring surgical intervention. Participants will be equipped with valuable experience and practical knowledge to make them adept at dealing with common problems in daily practice. The course is suitable for general practitioners and the nurses who work under their supervision, as well as for International Medical Graduates. The course assumes no prior knowledge or training in the field.COURSE CONTENTS
The content covers sections on theory plus hands-on practical sessions. This course is designed to assist GPs in developing confidence in various procedures and understanding their limitations without further practical experience.
The common surgical problems often encountered by GPs such as ingrown toenails, foreign bodies, lacerations, sebaceous cysts, etc. can be readily dealt within general practice. The program demonstrates and practices a range of surgical procedures, local
In the management of ingrown toenails, successful surgical treatment depends on obtaining satisfactory local anaesthesia. The program teaches and practices digital blocks to enable surgical correction and addresses other nail conditions such as acute paronychia abscess and subungual haematoma. The surgery ranges from removal of the nail edge, avulsion of the whole nail in selected cases, and more complex wedge resection. In addition, the increase in the popular use of Phenol ablation is demonstrated and informed consent, safety precautions and multiple attempts at post-operative care are dealt with in detail.
Hands and feet are common sites for splinters, nails and other objects to be embedded. Apart from local
Lacerations can range from a simple clean cut to a dirty, potentially infected wound. The program offers an overview
Sebaceous and pilar cysts are ubiquitous and can occur anywhere on the body. They may present as an infection or abscess around a previous lump. The course demonstrates local anaesthetic techniques in both the non-infected and infected sebaceous cyst with abscess and addresses several surgical methods depending on the sites on the body, the severity of the infection and the skill and experience of the practitioner. Particular care is taken to demonstrate the management of the resultant cavity following the removal of a cyst and instructions are given to avoid damage to underlying structures.
The experienced course presenters also show how to manage subcutaneous lipomata and share tips and tricks of doing this procedure simply and avoiding excessive bleeding.
The course also discusses the treatment of
The course also dedicates a session to
The theory and practical sessions cover:
- Lacerations, leg
ulcers and lipomas - Abscesses and sebaceous cysts
- Foreign bodies
- Ingrown toenails
- Warts, skin lesions and
haematomas - Haemorrhoids and anal-rectal conditions
- Local anaesthesia
- Simple and advanced suturing
- Post-operative care and dressing selection
Course participants will:
- Observe experts performing clinical procedures techniques on a large screen with close-up camera
- Perform procedural techniques in a simulated environment and receive feedback
- Participate in online discussion of patient cases, evaluate and make decisions
- Receive all presentation slides available for download.
- Receive unlimited and ongoing access to free alumni learning resources, video lectures, and discussion forums, as well as invite-only events and special offers after completion of the course
- Receive ongoing support post-course through webinars and case review
- Have the opportunity to participate in optional clinical attachments at dedicated clinics
COURSE OUTLINE
Saturday
Time | Session | Topic |
8:00am – 8:30am | Registration | |
8:30am – 10:00am | Session 1 | Principles of wound healing and managing Small procedures in general practice theory |
10:00am – 10:30am | Morning Tea | |
10:30am – 12:00pm | Session 2 | Closing the wound Theory and practical |
12:00pm – 1:00pm | Lunch | |
1:00pm – 2:30pm | Session 3 | Lacerations Theory and practical |
2:30pm – 3:00pm | Afternoon Tea | |
3:00pm – 4:30pm | Session 4 | Foreign bodies |
Sunday
Time | Session | Topic |
8:15am - 8:30am | Arrival | |
8:30am – 10:30am | Session 5 | Ingrown toenails Theory and practical |
10:30am – 11:00am | Morning Tea | |
11:00am – 1:00pm | Session 6 |
Lumps and bumps |
1:00pm – 2:00pm | Lunch | |
2:00pm – 3:00pm | Session 7 | Diagnosis and management of anal rectal conditions |
3:00pm - 3:30pm | Afternoon Tea | |
3:30pm – 4:30pm | Session 8 | Managing infected lesions |

A/Prof Maurice Brygel
FRACS
General Surgeon and Lecturer, Royal Australian College of Surgeons
Associate Professor Maurice Brygel is a Melbourne general surgeon who is a pioneer in day surgery hernia repair, having performed over 10,000 hernia operations. He became known as the "hernia king" after establishing the Melbourne Hernia Clinic at Masada and Cabrini hospitals. Maurice also teaches hands-on surgical office skills, which led to him producing and presenting certificate courses in clinical procedures with HealthCert over the last five years.
Maurice teaches at Notre Dame Medical School, Cabrini, the Alfred, and the Royal Australian College of Surgeons. Maurice has published extensively on hernias and authored several multimedia books including “The Video Book of Surgery” and “Exploring Essential Surgery” with the Mcgraw Hill Access Surgery and Medicine.

Dr Peter Grossberg
FRAC, MBBS
Senior Surgeon and Lecturer, Box Hill Hospital Melbourne
Dr Peter Grossberg is a graduate of the University of Melbourne and has a Fellowship from the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and the American College of Surgeons. He practices as a general surgeon and an Endoscopist in Cabrini Hospital, Malvern with extensive experience in general surgery, endoscopy, and laparoscopic surgery especially laparoscopic hernia surgery. Peter has been an examiner in surgical education at the undergraduate and postgraduate level for the past 35 years. He runs workshops for surgical trainees and GPs, particularly in office procedures.
Peter has been a senior lecturer in surgery at Monash and Melbourne Universities and continues to be involved in teaching and examination at the postgraduate level for anatomy at the University of Melbourne. He has been a Senior Surgeon, Head of Unit and Chairman of the Division of Surgery at Boxx Hill Hospital for the past eight years.

Dr Peter Milne
MBBS
Vascular, Endovascular & Laser Surgeon, Melbourne Vascular Surgery Unit, Cabrini Medical Centre, Victoria
Dr Peter Milne originally trained in general surgery but has specialised in vascular surgery since 1977. Peter was trained in Cardiovascular Surgery at the Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas and in Vascular Surgery at Royal Melbourne and Epsom District Hospitals. He established the Melbourne Vascular Surgery Unit in 1985.
Peter’s expertise and special interests include aneurysm repair by open surgery and endovascular means, and carotid surgery for stroke prevention with carotid artery stenting. He also performs limb bypass surgery as well as minimally invasive techniques of angioplasty and stenting. Another speciality of Peter’s is varicose vein treatment by surgery, laser and sclerotherapy including embolisation for pelvic congestion.
COURSE FEES AND PAYMENT OPTIONS
Regular Tuition fee
$3,195
Different payment options available.
Early Bird Rate
$2,995
Register 30 days prior to the course commencement date.
Deferred Payment
$845 x 4
Defer your payments over several months.
GP REGISTRARS: Doctors in training who are on a recognised pathway to General Practice Registration through a recognised training provider receive a HealthCert Scholarship of $500.
COURSE DELIVERY AND ASSESSMENT
The Professional Certificate of Clinical Procedures is designed as a face-to-face course that is supported by online materials. There are eight units in a HealthCert Professional Certificate program. Course learning materials will be available for 15 weeks. There will be pre-reading activities, an intensive weekend program with expert demonstrations and practical hands-on activities, online materials and further readings, individual assessment tasks and finally two online examinations.
Online assessment
In order to meet the requirements of professional and academic learning, the course assessment includes two online examinations:
- 88 knowledge questions based on a scenario of a medical practitioner undertaking special interest training.
- 11 per module
Example: The medical practitioner believes that 10% of the population … Is he correct? Yes/No
- 11 per module
- 88 authentic scenario based questions based on cases of patient care at a clinic
- 11 per module
Example: A patient arrives at your clinic with this problem … What should you do? Multiple choice images based on patient cases.
- 11 per module
The knowledge-based examination is worth 50 per cent and the application-based examination is worth 50 per cent. The overall pass mark is 80 per cent. It is therefore not possible to pass this course on knowledge alone. Knowledge must be successfully applied to patient cases in order to pass the course.
HealthCert recommends completion of the assessment at your convenience within three months of the completion of the course (or enrolling in the online course).CERTIFICATION AND ACCREDITATION
Upon successful completion of the exam, course participants will receive the Professional Certificate of Clinical Procedures.
RACGP and ACRRM points pending. RACGP and ACRRM have revised their accreditation processes and recognitions will be updated as soon as they are received.
This certificate course:
- Is Quality Assured by Bond University.
- Provides CPD points from the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP).
- Provides PRPD points from the Australian Council of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM).
- Is recognised by the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners (RNZCGP).
- Is recognised by the Hong Kong College of Family Physicians (HKCFP). The HKCFP recognises all courses
endorsed by the RACGP. Points are calculated differently. - Is a self-submitted activity in Dubai. The number of CPD points must be stated on the certificate. Please contact PLD@dhcr.gov.ae for more information.
- Is a self-submitted activity in the UK. CPD events overseas, applicable to a doctor’s scope of practice, may be submitted for revalidation. Please confirm with your Responsible Officer.
- Is a self-submitted activity in Canada through the College of Family Physicians of Canada. Category 1 points are reported as certified and Category 2 points are reported as non-certified. Contact mainprocredits@cfpc.ca for more information.
- Meets World Federation of Medical Education standards.
- Is quality-assured by Bond University.
- Qualifies for Clinical Attachment in France at the University of Lyon.
- Qualifies for Clinical Attachment in Austria at the University of Vienna.
- Has been independently developed with subject specialists and does not receive education grants from any pharmaceutical company.
EDUCATION PATHWAYS
Postgraduate Diploma in Minor Surgery studied through the Rila Institute of Health Sciences and awarded by the University of Plymouth (UK).
There are three modules in the Postgraduate Diploma. Medical professionals who successfully complete the HealthCert Professional Certificate of Clinical Procedures and the Advanced Certificate of Clinical Procedures will be eligible to apply for Accreditation of Prior Certified Learning (APCL) for module 2.
The Postgraduate Diploma is mainly delivered online. No practical workshops will be required due to the APCL from the HealthCert qualifications. Overall there will be a time saving of 40 per cent of the postgraduate program due to the APCL. Exams will be held in Perth, Western Australia.
When the Postgraduate Diploma has been successfully completed, doctors can apply for credit from the Postgraduate Diploma to the Master of Science in the specialism awarded by the University of Plymouth.
Upcoming intake dates are 6 February 2019 and 24 September 2019. For more information please click here.
Certified Clinical Attachments Pathway
Clinical Attachments are optional and available on a 1:1 basis. These provide the opportunity to observe clinical procedures and ask questions of the expert performing the procedures. Clinical Attachments are available for Skin Cancer Surgery (only for graduates of the Professional Certificate of Clinical Procedures). These are available in Australia and overseas. The clinical attachments are 1:1 in Australia and they are in small groups at university teaching hospitals and clinics overseas. HealthCert certificates and university statements are awarded for participating in clinical attachments.



