Online training frequently asked questions

What does the course cover?

The course consists of five modules: Understanding chronic disease self management (CDSM); Effective communication; Behavioural goal setting; Motivational interviewing; and Cognitive strategies to support CDSM. The emphasis of the training is upon the development of health professionals' knowledge and skills to support clients to manage their health.

Who is the training suitable for?

Nurses, allied health workers, mental health workers, Indigenous health workers, GPs, practice and community nurses and anyone working with clients with chronic disease.

Which patient group is the training aimed to support?

The training is aimed at health professionals working with adult clients who may have a range of chronic illnesses including but not limited to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, cardiac conditions, cancer and arthritis.

How do I register?

Individuals can register online here.

Groups interested in registering for the online training program should contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for more information.   

How long does it take to complete the training?

The training takes approximately one hour per module. Some people work through the training quite quickly, while others take more time to complete the training.

Registration covers access to the training modules for 45 days. An extension to the 45 day period is available but it will incur an extra charge. The training developers recommend completion of the training in a period of two weeks to support retention of all the concepts within the training.

What is the cost?

Five hour, five module course

Cost  $125.00  per individual

Group fees

 100+ by arrangement

Organisation/group licence - by arrangement 

Can my organisation purchase a licence to deliver the training?

To enable large scale use of the online learning within an organisation, we offer the program for a one off upfront payment along with an annual maintenance agreement and fee. This arrangement enables an organisation to offer the program  to an unlimited number of users over a longer period.

What is in each module?

All modules contain case studies, videos demonstrating skills, tools to support translation of skills into practice, interactive activities to support learning and a module review to summarise key components of each module. 

Do I get a manual to help me to support CDSM in practice?

As part of the training you can print out one copy of a manual to guide practice. The manual contains a range of tools, as well as patient stories which can be used to guide your understanding of some of the principles. The manual has sections on healthy eating, increasing physical activity, taking medication, increasing social support and smoking cessation.

What tools are included in the package?

The program teaches participants to apply strategies from motivational interviewing and cognitive behaviour therapy to support CDSM in clients. Participants are introduced to a range of practical tools to support CDSM in clinical practice. These tools will help you to practise the skills which are able to be used in interactions with clients to support a range of self management tasks. The tools facilitate application of the core patient-centred approach and behaviour change knowledge, attitudes and skills in interactions with patients. The tools include:

What content does each module cover?

Understanding CDSM module contents

Behavioural goal setting module contents

Effective communication module contents

Cognitive strategies to support CDSM module contents

Motivational interviewing module contents

What do the assessments involve?

The online multiple choice assessments have been devised to evaluate knowledge on completion of the package. There are two assessment tasks. Each takes around 20 minutes to complete. One assessment task requires answering multiple choice questions concerning a range of topics covered in the package. The second involves answering multiple choice questions about a case study to support translation of learning into practice.

Do I get a certificate of completion?

Users can print off a certificate of completion when they have completed all components of the package and successfully completed the two assessment tasks.

Does the training address core CDSM competencies?

The training addresses 10 core capabilities required by health professionals to support CDSM (Battersby and Lawn 2009). The ‘General patient centered capabilities' covered in the course include health promotion approaches, communication skills, assessment of self management capacity, collaborative care planning and use of peer support. In addition, the ‘behaviour change capabilities' covered in the course include models of behaviour change, motivational interviewing, collaborative problem definition, goal setting and goal achievement, and structured problem solving. In addition, the course covers key components of CDSM as identified by Bodenheimer and colleagues (2002). These include assessment, motivational interviewing, cognitive strategies, goal-setting, exploration of barriers to self management, relapse prevention, action planning, self efficacy building, exploration of self management support options, problem-solving and follow-up (Bodenheimer et al, 2002). The content of the program covers all of the skills and knowledge in the unit of competency ‘Support Client Self Management' (CHCICS406A) as specified by the Commonwealth of Australia Community Services Training Package.

Who developed the training?

The training was developed by the Heart Research Centre in partnership with Hunter New England Area Health Service. A broad steering committee was set up to inform the development of the training.  Development and evaluation of the online package training was funded by the Department of Health and Ageing.

Has the training been evaluated?

The training has been comprehensively evaluated. Results demonstrate that health professionals who complete the training increase their self efficacy to support CDSM. In addition, health professionals who complete the training adopt a more patient centred approach. All health professionals who completed the training had some intention to change practice, with many planning multiple practice changes. To obtain a comprehensive evaluation report contact Dr Rosemary Higgins on This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it