About Medical Council
The Medical Council regulates doctors under the Medical Practitioners Act 2007 — maintaining the Register, setting standards, and investigating complaints.
Ireland · Doctors
Ethics & Professionalism Courses for Doctors in Ireland
Developed for doctors registered with the Medical Council of Ireland. Our courses address the ethical standards, professional conduct expectations, and fitness to practise requirements set out in the Council's Guide to Professional Conduct and Ethics. Written by healthcare professionals who understand Irish medical regulation.
Why These Courses?
Aligned with Medical Council guidelines. Helping doctors facing an investigation, inquiry or fitness to practise review, and for CPD purposes.
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We'll recommend the courses you need based on your situation
ETHICS & CONDUCT STANDARDS
Ethics and Ethical Standards for Doctors
Covers ethical obligations including duties to report concerns, maintain honesty, and uphold probity in all professional dealings — core Medical Council requirements.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
PROFESSIONALISM STANDARDS
Professionalism and Professional Standards for Doctors
Covers professional standards and behaviours expected by the Medical Council — conduct, communication, teamwork, and maintaining public trust.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
MEDICAL ETHICS
Medical Ethics Course
Comprehensive course on medical ethics principles — ethical frameworks, moral reasoning, and professional decision-making aligned with Medical Council guidelines.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
Professional Ethics Course
Explores the professional ethics landscape — ethical obligations, standards of practice, and regulatory expectations set by the Medical Council.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
DUTY OF CANDOUR
Duty of Candour for Healthcare Professionals
Covers duty of candour obligations — being open and honest with patients when things go wrong, as required by the Medical Council.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
CONFIDENTIALITY
Confidentiality in Healthcare Practice
Understand confidentiality obligations under Medical Council guidelines — data protection, justified disclosure, and information sharing.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
PRIVACY, CONSENT & CHAPERONE
Privacy, Consent and Chaperone in Healthcare Practice
Training on valid informed consent, patient privacy, capacity assessment, and chaperone requirements per Medical Council guidelines.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
COMMUNICATION
Effective Communication for Healthcare Professionals
Communication skills that prevent complaints — breaking bad news, shared decision-making, and conflict resolution per Medical Council guidelines.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
DOCUMENTATION
Documentation for Healthcare Professionals
Create clear, legally defensible records meeting Medical Council standards — electronic records, amendments, and common errors.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
SOCIAL MEDIA
Social Media Professionalism and Boundaries for Healthcare Professionals
Navigate social media risks — Medical Council guidance on online conduct, digital confidentiality, and reputation management.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
TEAMWORK
Ensuring Teamwork and Collaboration
Strengthen multidisciplinary teamwork — communication, handover protocols, hierarchy management, and safe team environments.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
PRESCRIBING
Prescribing Guidance and Standards for Healthcare Professionals
Ethical and professional standards for safe prescribing — regulatory guidelines, controlled substances, and protocols.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
CLINICAL COMPETENCE
Ensuring Clinical Competence and Patient Safety
Maintain and demonstrate clinical competence as required by the Medical Council — patient safety, risk management, and governance.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
PROBITY
Probity and Honesty for Healthcare Professionals
What probity means under Medical Council guidelines — honesty, financial integrity, transparency, and managing conflicts of interest.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
FINANCIAL INTEGRITY
Financial Integrity for Healthcare Professionals
Navigate financial ethics — conflicts of interest, industry relationships, billing ethics, gift policies, and full transparency.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
TRUST REBUILDING
Rebuilding Trust of Patients, Public and Healthcare Regulator
Practical guidance on rebuilding professional trust after an incident — restoring confidence with patients, the public, and the Medical Council.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
FITNESS TO PRACTICE
Fitness to Practise for Healthcare Professionals
Essential course for Medical Council proceedings — complaints, investigation, hearings, demonstrating insight, remediation, and outcomes.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
MODULE ON INSIGHT
Insight for Fitness to Practise
Build professional insight — recognising limitations, understanding impact, and satisfying Medical Council expectations during proceedings.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
MODULE ON REMEDIATION
Remediation for Fitness to Practise
Guidance on effective remediation — action plans, evidencing change, and demonstrating concerns are addressed.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
MODULE ON REFLECTION
Reflection for Fitness to Practise
Develop meaningful reflective practice — reflective accounts, structured frameworks, and meeting Medical Council expectations.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
MISTAKE & MISCONDUCT PREVENTION
Ensuring No Repeat of Misconduct or Mistake in Future Practice
Demonstrate that past issues will not be repeated — root cause analysis, practice changes, and sustained improvement.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
COMPLAINT OR INVESTIGATION
Dealing with a Complaint or Investigation Professionally
Guidance on managing complaints professionally — investigation process, response letters, lessons learned, and resilience.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
PROFESSIONAL BOUNDARIES
Professional Boundaries Course
Covers the boundary spectrum, dual relationships, warning signs of drift, sexual boundary violations, and maintaining trust.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
ETHICAL BOUNDARIES
Ethical Boundaries with Patients and Colleagues
Maintaining ethical boundaries in clinical relationships — patient interactions, colleague dynamics, and power imbalances.
2 CPD hours · aligned with Medical Council
Ethics and Professionalism CPD for Doctors in Ireland
Ethical practice sits at the centre of good medical care in Ireland. The Medical Council sets the standards every registered doctor is expected to meet, and ethics, professionalism and probity run through all of them. Our courses give doctors a structured, documented way to develop these areas — whether for routine continuing professional development, or to demonstrate insight and remediation after a concern has been raised.
Facing an investigation, inquiry, complaint or fitness-to-practise process?
You don’t have to face it alone. Our courses are built to help doctors in Ireland respond constructively to a Medical Council complaint, inquiry, investigation or fitness-to-practise process — demonstrating the genuine insight, remediation and reflection regulators look for, while strengthening your future practice. Work through them at your own pace, with a certificate for your portfolio at the end. They complement, and never replace, advice from your indemnifier or solicitor.
Find your courses →Medical Council standards and the Professional Competence Scheme
The Medical Council's Guide to Professional Conduct and Ethics for Registered Medical Practitioners sets out the ethical duties expected of doctors, and registered doctors must maintain their professional competence through an enrolled Professional Competence Scheme. Ethics and professionalism are recognised domains of good professional practice, and our Medical Ethics Course and Professional Ethics Course help you evidence structured learning across them. For role-specific material, see Ethics and Ethical Standards for Doctors and Professionalism and Professional Standards for Doctors.
Fitness to practise and responding to a Medical Council complaint
Under the Medical Practitioners Act 2007 the Medical Council can investigate complaints about a doctor's fitness to practise, which may lead to an inquiry and, in some cases, sanctions. Doctors who can show genuine insight, reflection and remediation early are in a far stronger position. Our Insight for Fitness to Practise, Remediation for Fitness to Practise and Reflection for Fitness to Practise courses are written for exactly this, alongside Dealing with a Complaint or Investigation Professionally and Ensuring No Repeat of Misconduct or Mistake in Future Practice.
Consent, confidentiality and data protection
Irish doctors must safeguard patient confidentiality and handle personal data in line with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. Clear consent and appropriate use of chaperones are equally central to safe, respectful care. These themes are covered in Confidentiality in Healthcare Practice, Privacy, Consent and Chaperone in Healthcare Practice and Effective Communication for Healthcare Professionals.
Probity, boundaries and documentation
Honesty and probity, maintaining professional boundaries, and keeping accurate records are recurring themes in fitness-to-practise cases. The relevant courses include Probity and Honesty for Healthcare Professionals, the Professional Boundaries Course, Ethical Boundaries with Patients and Colleagues, Documentation for Healthcare Professionals and Financial Integrity for Healthcare Professionals.
Candour, teamwork and everyday professionalism
Open and honest communication when things go wrong, safe prescribing, good teamwork and professional conduct online all support patient trust and reduce risk. Explore Duty of Candour for Healthcare Professionals, Prescribing Guidance and Standards, Ensuring Teamwork and Collaboration, Ensuring Clinical Competence and Patient Safety, Social Media Professionalism and Boundaries and Rebuilding Trust of Patients, the Public and Healthcare Regulators.
What our doctor ethics courses cover
Every course is concise, practical and mapped to the standards Irish doctors are expected to meet — two CPD hours each, fully online, with an instant certificate.
Ethics and ethical standards
Core medical ethics and the ethical standards doctors are held to under the Medical Council's Guide to Professional Conduct and Ethics — consent, confidentiality, honesty and respect for patient autonomy.
Professionalism and probity
What good professional behaviour looks like in day-to-day practice: integrity, honesty in all dealings, appropriate boundaries with patients and colleagues, and professional use of social media.
Fitness to practise, insight and remediation
Understanding the Medical Council's fitness-to-practise process, and developing the insight, reflection and remediation that demonstrate genuine learning after a complaint or mistake.
Communication, consent and confidentiality
Effective communication, valid consent, the duty of candour, and protecting patient information in line with GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
Courses can be taken individually for routine CPD or combined to build a focused portfolio when preparing for, or responding to, a Medical Council investigation.
Frequently asked questions
Are these courses suitable for doctors in Ireland?
Yes. They are written for doctors registered with the Medical Council, using Irish standards, terminology and the Medical Practitioners Act 2007 framework.
Do the courses count towards the Professional Competence Scheme?
They provide structured CPD that you can record in your professional competence portfolio under the relevant domains. We are an independent course provider, not a postgraduate training body, so confirm how the CPD maps to your scheme with your training body (for example RCPI or ICGP).
How many CPD hours is each course?
Each course is worth 2 CPD hours.
How much does each course cost?
Each course is €99. Discounts are available if you buy several courses together.
Do I get a certificate?
Yes. You receive an instant certificate of completion as soon as you finish each course.
Can these courses help if I am facing a Medical Council complaint or fitness-to-practise inquiry?
They can help you demonstrate insight, remediation and reflection, which the Medical Council looks for. They are educational courses and not legal advice — for a live complaint you should also seek advice from your indemnifier and, where appropriate, a solicitor.
Are the courses online and self-paced?
Yes. Every course is fully online and self-paced, and works on any device.
Do the courses cover GDPR and patient confidentiality?
Yes. Confidentiality, privacy, valid consent and data protection under GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 are covered across several courses.
Which course should I start with?
Most doctors start with the Medical Ethics Course, the Professional Ethics Course, or Ethics and Ethical Standards for Doctors, then add courses relevant to their needs.
Are the courses aligned with the Medical Council's Guide to Professional Conduct and Ethics?
Yes. The content is written with close reference to the Guide and to recurring themes in fitness-to-practise cases. We are an independent provider and not endorsed by the Medical Council.
Who develops the courses?
Courses are developed by a team led by Dr Shehzad Iqbal, drawing on healthcare law, ethics and professional regulation experience, and are kept up to date with current standards.
Can I buy courses for my team or department?
Yes. You can buy multiple courses, and a bulk-buy bundle is available for individuals or teams who want broader coverage.
How long do I have access?
You have ample time to complete each course at your own pace, and you can download your certificate as soon as you finish.
Will the certificate be accepted by my employer or training body?
The certificate documents the CPD you have completed. Whether it is counted towards a specific requirement is at the discretion of your employer or training body, so check their criteria if you need it for a particular purpose.
Preparing for Investigation or seeking CPD?
Courses written by healthcare professionals, aligned with Medical Council guidelines for doctors in Ireland.
Find Your Courses