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Professionalism & Boundaries in Use of Social Media

A UK CPD Course for Healthcare and Social Care Professionals

  • About 3 hours estimated learning time
  • 5 sections, 15 lessons
  • Checkpoints and a 15-question final assessment
  • Online, self-paced, any device

About this course

Social media is now part of everyday life for healthcare professionals. It is used to learn, share research, build professional networks, promote services, campaign, and stay in touch with friends and family. It is also one of the most common routes into a fitness to practise investigation. A single post, photograph, message or comment can breach confidentiality, cross a professional boundary, mislead the public or damage confidence in a profession, and once it is online it can be copied, shared and seen by thousands of people within minutes.

This course explains how the UK health and social care regulators expect professionals to behave online, and how familiar duties of confidentiality, boundaries, honesty and respect apply in digital spaces. It covers messaging apps and professional groups, searching for patients online, freedom of expression and public debate, advertising and influencing, prescription-only medicines, generative AI and deepfakes, responding to online reviews and abuse, and what to do when something goes wrong. You will finish by writing a personal social media policy that you can use in practice.

CPD Value and How to Record It

This course is designed to provide approximately 3 hours of learning, including reading, the reflection points, the reflective account and the assessment. In the UK, CPD is generally recorded as the time actually spent learning, so you should record the time you genuinely spend, which may be more or less than the estimate.

How the course fits your revalidation or CPD requirements depends on your regulator. For example, the NMC asks nurses, midwives and nursing associates to record 35 hours of CPD over three years, of which at least 20 must be participatory; self-directed online learning such as this course usually counts as individual learning unless you complete it with others. The GMC expects doctors to reflect on CPD for appraisal and revalidation rather than setting a fixed number of hours. The HCPC, GDC, GPhC, GOC, GOsC and GCC each set their own CPD requirements, so check the current rules that apply to you. Always keep your certificate together with your written reflection.

What you will learn

  • Explain how UK regulators' standards apply to the online conduct of healthcare and social care professionals.
  • Protect patient confidentiality and privacy when using social media, messaging apps and online groups.
  • Maintain clear professional boundaries with patients, service users, colleagues and students online.
  • Balance freedom of expression with professional duties, including when sharing opinions, health information or concerns.
  • Advertise and promote services lawfully and honestly, including the rules on prescription-only medicines.
  • Recognise emerging online risks and respond appropriately when things go wrong.

Who it is for

Doctors, nurses, midwives, nursing associates, dentists and dental care professionals, pharmacists, optical professionals, allied health professionals, social workers, students and anyone registered with a UK health or social care regulator

Standards and law covered

GMC Good medical practice (2024) and social media advice; NMC Code, social media guidance and freedom of expression guidance; HCPC guidance on social media (2024); GDC, GPhC and GOC guidance; Social Work England guidance on communicating online (2026); UK GDPR; advertising rules (CAP Code and Human Medicines Regulations 2012); Online Safety Act 2023

Course content

Lessons open one after another as you work through the course. They unlock once you enrol.

1Overview of Professionalism and Boundaries on Social Media2 lessons
  • 1.1 How Healthcare Professionals Use Social Media
  • 1.2 The Benefits of Responsible Use
  • 1.3 Summary Points and Quiz for Section 1
2UK Regulatory Guidance on Social Media2 lessons
  • 2.1 Why Regulators Take Online Conduct Seriously
  • 2.2 Nursing and Midwifery Council
  • 2.3 Key Points and Knowledge Check: Section 2
3Freedom of Expression, Opinions and Public Debate5 lessons
  • 3.1 Common Principles Across the Regulators
  • 3.2 Data Protection Law
  • 3.3 Giving Advice Online
  • 3.4 Titles, Qualifications and Honest Self-Presentation
  • 3.5 Generative AI and Online Content
  • 3.6 Summary Points and Quiz for Section 3
4Emerging Online Risks3 lessons
  • 4.1 Impersonation and Deepfakes
  • 4.2 If You Post Something You Regret
  • 4.3 If You Are Targeted or Abused Online
  • 4.4 Key Points and Knowledge Check: Section 4
5When Things Go Wrong Online2 lessons
  • 5.1 How Fitness to Practise Processes Approach Social Media Concerns
  • 5.2 Building a Personal Social Media Policy
  • 5.3 Interactive Quiz for Section 5
6Conclusions and Takeaways1 lesson
  • 6.1 Bringing It Together: Key Messages
Reflection and final assessment3 steps
  • Your reflective account
  • Final assessment: 15 questions, 80% to pass
  • Certificate of completion
3 hours

Estimated learning time

This covers the lessons, section checkpoints, your reflective account and the final assessment. Everyone works at a different pace, so record the time you actually spend in your CPD log. The player shows the time you have spent in the course to help you.

Your certificate of completion

When you pass the final assessment you can download a certificate showing your name, the course title, the estimated learning time, your completion date and a certificate number that anyone can check on this website. Keep it with your reflective account in your CPD records.

Questions about this course

How long does the course take?

The estimated learning time is about 3 hours, including the lessons, section checkpoints, your reflective account and the final assessment. People work at different speeds, so record the time you actually spend in your own CPD log.

How do I access the course after buying it?

Log in to your FTP Courses account and open the course from My Courses. The course runs in your web browser on a computer, tablet or phone, and your progress is saved to your account so you can stop and continue later.

How is the course assessed?

Each section ends with a short checkpoint. At the end there is a final assessment of 15 questions; you need 80% (12 correct) to pass. If you do not pass, you can review the course and try again after a short wait.

What do I receive when I finish?

You can download a certificate of completion showing your name, the course title, the estimated learning time, your completion date and a certificate number that can be checked online. You can also download your reflective account for your CPD portfolio.

Is this course linked to my regulator?

No. FTP Courses is an independent education provider and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any UK regulator. The course is CPD-aligned: it is written to help you learn and reflect against your regulator's published standards, and on completion you receive a certificate of completion stating the estimated learning time. Record the time you actually spend in your own CPD log, and decide how the course fits your CPD or any remediation plan, ideally with advice from your defence organisation, union or legal adviser.

Will completing the course guarantee a particular outcome in a complaint or investigation?

No course can guarantee an outcome. Decision-makers look at genuine insight, reflection and sustained change in your practice. The course is designed to support that learning; it does not replace it.