HealthCert Insights – A Podcast for Doctors, Nurses and Healthcare Professionals

Mohs surgery and how it fits into everyday skin cancer practice

Mohs surgery is often described as the gold standard for skin cancer excision, but in practice it’s a precision tool, not a default option.

In this episode of Life by A Thousand Cuts, A/Prof Tony Dicker looks at what Mohs surgery actually involves, why it is different from standard excision, and the specific clinical situations where it adds real value.

Rather than relying on representative histology, Mohs uses complete margin assessment before reconstruction. That makes it particularly useful when margins are hard to define, tissue is limited, or recurrence would be costly for the patient.

Tune into this week's episode for an insightful discussion about:

• Why poorly defined or recurrent tumours raise margin uncertainty
• Why anatomical sites like eyelids, lips, and the nose change the risk calculus
• How Mohs compares with alternatives such as delayed reconstruction or planned re-excision
• When standard excision remains entirely appropriate

The aim is to help you recognise when certainty matters more than speed, and when referral can spare patients repeat surgery or complex revisions.

 

Prefer a visual format? Watch this podcast here.

Life by a Thousand Cuts 

This podcast series is designed to help you enhance your clinical decision-making, procedural skills, and confidence in skin cancer management. Focus on real-world cases, surgical techniques and tips, journal article reviews, diagnostic and management insights, and guest interviews with GPs and specialists.

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓  NEW Micro-Course: Introduction to the Dermatoscope
Led by A/Prof Tony Dicker, this short course introduces the dermatoscope as the clinician’s key diagnostic tool for skin examination — a practical foundation for those beginning their journey in skin cancer detection.
✅ Learn how to use the dermatoscope and capture clinical images.
🎖️ 9.5 hours CPD  •  Online  •   $195
👉 Learn more & enrol >

 

🎓 Certificate Courses in Skin Cancer
Explore our university-assured, structured pathway to elevate your knowledge in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer.
➡️ Explore full program

Collagen stimulators, clinical standards, and the regulatory maze

In this episode of HealthCert's The Aesthetic Shift podcast series, Kelly Beasy sits down with Naomi Grayson — registered nurse, educator, and co-founder of Pinkit Medical — to explore the evolving world of regenerative aesthetics.

Naomi shares how her clinical background shaped the development of collagen-stimulating treatments, why skin quality is becoming central to modern aesthetic practice, and what clinicians should understand about choosing and using these products safely.

This episode also touches on the often-misunderstood regulatory landscape in Australia, including how topical products differ from TGA-regulated medicines, what clinicians should be checking before introducing a new product, and why transparency from suppliers matters more than ever.

If you are curious about where collagen stimulators fit into contemporary practice, how practitioners can approach education and product selection with rigour, or what the industry shift toward skin-focused treatments means for clinics, this conversation is worth a listen.

Watch this episode here.

 

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓 Micro-Courses in Aesthetic Medicine
Explore short, bite-sized CPD modules in focused topics in cosmetic medicine for GPs and nurses. Complete in less than 10 hours.
➡️ Browse Micro-Courses >

🎓 Certificate Courses in Aesthetic Medicine
Explore our university-assured, structured Professional Diploma pathway to elevate your skills in primary care cosmetic medicine.
➡️  Explore full program >

 

GPs in skin cancer surgery: When to cut and when to refer

Excision is routine work in primary care, but deciding who should wield the scalpel isn’t always straightforward. In this episode of Life by A Thousand Cuts, A/Prof Tony Dicker explores the real-world judgement calls GPs make every day: when a skin cancer can be safely managed in-house, and when referral is the wiser path.

Tune into the episode below to hear a grounded, experience-based discussion covering:

• Why local anaesthetic tolerance remains a key early filter.
• How size, complexity and your own comfort level influence the decision to proceed.
• The value of working alongside more experienced colleagues, and why observing can still be a worthwhile investment in your skills.
• When patient preference, social factors, and after-care logistics should tip the balance toward referral.
• Why a transparent, informed-consent conversation protects both patient outcomes and your medico-legal footing.

This week's episode is a concise, candid look at the grey zones of primary-care skin cancer surgery, ideal for any GP refining their procedural decision-making.

 

Prefer a visual format? Watch this podcast here.

Life by a Thousand Cuts 

This podcast series is designed to help you enhance your clinical decision-making, procedural skills, and confidence in skin cancer management. Focus on real-world cases, surgical techniques and tips, journal article reviews, diagnostic and management insights, and guest interviews with GPs and specialists.

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓  NEW Micro-Course: Introduction to the Dermatoscope
Led by A/Prof Tony Dicker, this short course introduces the dermatoscope as the clinician’s key diagnostic tool for skin examination — a practical foundation for those beginning their journey in skin cancer detection.
✅ Learn how to use the dermatoscope and capture clinical images.
🎖️ 9.5 hours CPD  •  Online  •   $195
👉 Learn more & enrol >

 

🎓 Certificate Courses in Skin Cancer
Explore our university-assured, structured pathway to elevate your knowledge in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer.
➡️ Explore full program

Medical and 3D nipple tattooing: Restoring confidence after cancer

For many women, the final step in breast reconstruction after cancer is medical tattooing. In this episode of HealthCert's The Aesthetic Shift podcast series, Kelly Beasy speaks with Aleisha Gannon, a leading Australian paramedical tattooist whose work in 3D nipple tattooing has supported thousands of women in their recovery after breast cancer.

In this conversation, Aleisha (Cosmetic & Body Art Tattooist and Founder of Pink Lotus Breast Restoration) explains what makes nipple tattooing so specialised, the unique challenges of working on reconstructed skin, and why correct technique, colour theory, and infection prevention are non-negotiable.

She shares how she collaborates with surgeons and breast care nurses, the growing role of nurses in medical tattooing, and why evidence-based aftercare matters just as much as artistry.

The episode also explores corrective work, common complications, and how clinicians can support patients who may be hesitant or unsure about their options.

Watch this episode here.

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓 Micro-Courses in Aesthetic Medicine
Explore short, bite-sized CPD modules in focused topics in cosmetic medicine for GPs and nurses. Complete in less than 10 hours.
➡️ Browse Micro-Courses >

🎓 Certificate Courses in Aesthetic Medicine
Explore our university-assured, structured Professional Diploma pathway to elevate your skills in primary care cosmetic medicine.
➡️  Explore full program >

 

Local anaesthesia in skin cancer surgery: What the evidence says

Local anaesthetic choice and dosing are such a routine part of skin cancer surgery that it’s easy to fall into habit. But with ongoing supply pressures, evolving research, and the increasing volume of procedures performed in primary care, many GPs are now asking: how low can we safely go with lignocaine concentrations, and does dilution actually work?

In this episode of Life by A Thousand Cuts, A/Prof Tony Dicker breaks down the evidence on lignocaine dosing, including what the newer data tells us about using lower concentrations in day-to-day skin cancer work.

This episode covers:

• Why names like lignocaine, lidocaine, Xylocaine, adrenaline, and epinephrine all trace back to the same core agents.
• How standard concentrations (1% and 2%, with or without adrenaline) compare with the diluted formulations used in dermatologic surgery.
• What the January 2025 Dermatologic Surgery double-blind trial found when comparing 0.25% vs 0.5% lignocaine, and why both were equally effective for pain control, patient satisfaction, and top-ups.
• How these findings relate to tumescent anaesthesia in liposuction, where even more dilute solutions still perform reliably.
• Practical safety limits, including the importance of avoiding unnecessarily large volumes in primary care and maintaining robust processes if your clinic is diluting local anaesthetic.
• Real-world considerations around toxicity, duration of effect, and past adverse events that underline why careful dosing still matters.

If you perform skin cancer procedures in general practice, this is a crisp, evidence-focused update on a tool you use every day, with some simple takeaways you can apply immediately.

 

Prefer a visual format? Watch this podcast here.

Life by a Thousand Cuts 

This podcast series is designed to help you enhance your clinical decision-making, procedural skills, and confidence in skin cancer management. Focus on real-world cases, surgical techniques and tips, journal article reviews, diagnostic and management insights, and guest interviews with GPs and specialists.

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓  NEW Micro-Course: Introduction to the Dermatoscope
Led by A/Prof Tony Dicker, this short course introduces the dermatoscope as the clinician’s key diagnostic tool for skin examination — a practical foundation for those beginning their journey in skin cancer detection.
✅ Learn how to use the dermatoscope and capture clinical images.
🎖️ 9.5 hours CPD  •  Online  •   $195
👉 Learn more & enrol >

 

🎓 Certificate Courses in Skin Cancer
Explore our university-assured, structured pathway to elevate your knowledge in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer.
➡️ Explore full program

 

Nurse-Melanographer model: Essential insights for GPs & nurses

Managing skin cancer demand in primary care is a challenge, especially with doctor shortages in regional areas. This episode of the HealthCert Insights podcast dives into the Nurse–Melanographer model: a proven approach that expands clinic capacity, improves patient access to skin cancer services, and creates rewarding career pathways for nurses and dermal clinicians.

Melanographers are nurses or dermal clinicians trained in dermoscopy and skin cancer detection. They perform skin checks, document lesions, and collaborate closely with doctors, allowing clinics to see more patients efficiently without compromising quality.

In this episode, Matt Woollard (a skin cancer clinic operations expert who has built and managed more than 40 skin cancer clinics in Australia over the past 25 years) explains several ways this model works in practice: from Melanographers performing skin checks with doctors onsite, to “tag-team” setups where a Melanographer and GP share appointments.

The model not only reduces wait times and eases doctor workloads but also strengthens the clinic’s economics; patients pay fair out-of-pocket costs while doctors can focus on surgical work and complex cases.

If you are a nurse interested in specialising in skin cancer, or a clinic owner exploring ways to manage demand, this episode will provide practical insights you can implement immediately.

 

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓 Micro-Courses in Skin Cancer
Explore short, bite-sized CPD modules in focused topics in skin cancer. Complete in less than 10 hours from only $95.
➡️ Micro-Courses for GPs >     

➡️ Micro-Courses for nurses >

 

🎓 Certificate Courses in Skin Cancer
Explore our university-assured, structured pathways to elevate your knowledge in the primary care management of skin cancer.
➡️ Skin Cancer pathway for GPs >    

➡️ Melanography pathway for nurses >

When and how to use secondary intention healing under new MBS changes

With recent updates to the MBS now in effect as of 1 November 2025, GPs and skin cancer doctors will notice some important wording changes in the surgical operation item numbers, particularly those relating to excision and repair.

In this episode of Life by A Thousand Cuts, A/Prof Tony Dicker explains what these amendments mean in real terms, unpacking the subtle but significant implications for everyday skin cancer surgery.

One of the most notable clarifications is the recognition that repairs are “included if performed”, meaning cases managed with healing by secondary intention are now explicitly covered.

Through a detailed case study of a basal cell carcinoma near the inner canthus, A/Prof Dicker walks through the full clinical workflow from excision margins and wound care to patient follow-up and histology, illustrating how secondary intention can achieve excellent outcomes in the right anatomical contexts.

He also shares practical dressing choices, patient management tips, and key considerations for concave sites such as the inner canthus and conchal bowl, where grafts or flaps may not always be necessary.

If you are managing skin cancers in primary care or surgical practice, this discussion offers valuable insight into how legislative nuance translates to patient care and procedural decision-making.

Download your quick-reference Medicare Skin Cancer Item Number Guide, updated November 2025 here.

 

Prefer a visual format? Watch this podcast here.

Life by a Thousand Cuts 

This podcast series is designed to help you enhance your clinical decision-making, procedural skills, and confidence in skin cancer management. Focus on real-world cases, surgical techniques and tips, journal article reviews, diagnostic and management insights, and guest interviews with GPs and specialists.

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓 Certificate Courses in Skin Cancer
Explore our university-assured, structured pathway to elevate your knowledge in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer.
➡️ Explore full program

 

Can curettage alone be curative for skin cancer?

In skin cancer surgery, the humble curette is a familiar tool, but how effective is curettage on its own as a definitive treatment? In this episode of Life by a Thousand Cuts, A/Prof Tony Dicker takes a closer look at a new study published in Dermatologic Surgery exploring five-year recurrence rates following curettage-only management of keratinocyte carcinomas.

In the episode, A/Prof Dicker covers:

• How the study was designed and what its limitations tell us about real-world data collection
• How recurrence rates after curettage compare with surgery, cautery, and topical therapies
• What this means for treatment selection, patient communication, and MBS item use in Australian practice

If you have ever wondered whether curettage alone can stand up as a reliable primary treatment option, this episode offers useful insights drawn from recent evidence and practical interpretation.

 

Watch this episode here.

Life by a Thousand Cuts 

This podcast series is designed to help you enhance your clinical decision-making, procedural skills, and confidence in skin cancer management. Focus on real-world cases, surgical techniques and tips, journal article reviews, diagnostic and management insights, and guest interviews with GPs and specialists.

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓 Certificate Courses in Skin Cancer
Explore our university-assured, structured pathway to elevate your knowledge in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer.
➡️ Explore full program

Understanding & expanding your scope of practice in aesthetic medicine

Looking to practise responsibly and confidently in aesthetic medicine? In this episode of HealthCert's The Aesthetic Shift podcast series, Kelly Beasy breaks down one of the most important (and often misunderstood) concepts in clinical practice: scope of practice.

Whether you are a nurse, nurse practitioner, or doctor, your scope of practice isn’t fixed. It evolves with your education, competence, authority, and clinical context. But defining and maintaining that scope is essential to patient safety, professional integrity, and legal compliance.

In the episode, Kelly explores what “scope of practice” really means outside the hospital setting, where roles can vary widely and clinicians often set their own boundaries. She discusses:

• Why formal education (not just conferences or observation) matters for safe practice
• How to assess your competence, including your ability to manage complications
• The importance of medical oversight and team structures that align with your qualifications
• Why your scope changes with context,  from rural to city practice, or as your career evolves
• The value of mentorship in safely expanding your scope over time

Watch this episode here.

 

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓 Certificate Courses in Aesthetic Medicine
Explore our university-assured, structured Professional Diploma pathway to elevate your skills in primary care Aesthetic Medicine.
➡️  Explore full program >

Managing actinic keratosis in primary care: Diagnosis to prevention

Dr John O’Bryen delivers an insightful presentation for GPs on practical, evidence-based approaches to diagnosing, managing, and preventing actinic keratosis in the general practice setting.

As part of HealthCert Education's Masterclasses in Dermoscopy and Skin Cancer Surgery in Brisbane in August 2025, Skin Cancer Doctor John O'Bryen delivered an informative talk (in collaboration with La Roche Posay) on the primary care management of actinic keratosis, from diagnosis and management to prevention and patient education.

What you will learn

• Navigate best practice strategies for actinic keratosis management, covering diagnosis, treatment, post-treatment care, and recurrence prevention.
• Learn evidence-based approaches to improve patient outcomes and minimise side effects.
• Gain insights on how to optimise healing after procedures (biopsies, cryotherapy, excisions, topical therapies, etc.) and identify delayed wound healing.
• Discover how to implement preventative measures against actinic keratosis recurrence and skin cancers.
• Hear your colleagues' questions and Dr O'Bryen's real-world advice in the concluding Q&A session.

 

💡 You can also watch the video here.

 

Next steps in your learning journey

🎓 Certificate Courses in Skin Cancer Medicine
Explore our university-assured, structured pathway to elevate your knowledge in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer.
➡️ Explore full program >