First, avoid a common mix-up:Good medical practice is professional guidance published by the
General Medical Council (GMC).
It is not an NHS GP surgery, not an appointment service and not the same thing as a CQC “Good” rating.
General Medical Council standards explained
Good medical practice: what GMC standards mean for doctors and NHS GP patients
Good medical practice is the GMC’s core framework for professional behaviour.
It explains how registered doctors, physician associates and anaesthesia associates should work safely,
communicate with patients, work with colleagues and maintain public trust.
For doctors, the current version came into effect on 30 January 2024.
Fast answer:
The General Medical Council’s Good medical practice guidance sets the professional standards expected of GMC registrants.
For doctors, the current framework took effect on 30 January 2024.
It was updated on 13 December 2024 when GMC regulation of physician associates and anaesthesia associates began.
It is an ethical and professional framework, not a local GP booking policy or a simple checklist that guarantees a particular treatment.
Currentness check for 2026:
the GMC still publishes Good medical practice 2024 as its core guidance.
Supporting guidance continues to be updated separately; for example, the GMC’s Decision making and consent guidance was updated on 3 August 2026.
That does not mean a new edition of the core Good medical practice framework was issued in 2026.
What are you actually trying to do?
People often reach this topic for completely different reasons.
Choose the route below before reading professional standards as though they were GP-surgery instructions.
The GMC considers fitness-to-practise and public-protection concerns.
For a shorter overview of the same regulatory topic, see our
GMC Good Medical Practice guide.
This page goes further into the General Medical Council framework, patient expectations and concern routes.
Which version of Good medical practice is current?
The GMC’s current core guidance is the version commonly called
Good medical practice 2024.
It came into effect for doctors on 30 January 2024.
The GMC updated the guidance on 13 December 2024
when its regulation of physician associates and anaesthesia associates came into effect.
The GMC now describes the guidance as applying to all doctors, PAs and AAs registered with it,
to the extent relevant to their professional role.
Do not rely on an old 2013 copy.
The previous Good medical practice guidance was archived when the current framework took effect.
For professional, training, appraisal or complaint decisions, use the live GMC version.
The GMC divides Good medical practice into four domains.
The GMC says each domain is equally important; one is not a higher-ranking standard than another.
1. Knowledge, skills and development
Medical professionals should provide a good standard of care,
work within their competence,
keep knowledge and skills up to date
and continue learning from their work.
2. Patients, partnership and communication
Patients should be treated fairly and with dignity.
Medical professionals should listen,
share relevant information,
support informed decisions
and protect confidentiality.
3. Colleagues, culture and safety
This domain covers teamwork, respectful workplaces,
continuity of care, safe delegation,
clear records and acting when patient safety may be compromised.
4. Trust and professionalism
Medical professionals should act honestly and with integrity,
maintain professional boundaries,
avoid unfair discrimination
and behave in ways that justify public trust.
Professional judgement still matters.
The GMC describes Good medical practice as an ethical framework rather than a mechanical rulebook.
Registrants must decide which standards apply to the real circumstances they are facing and be able to justify their professional decisions.
What duties sit behind the four domains?
The GMC also publishes a shorter duties summary.
For patients, these duties provide a useful way to understand what safe professional behaviour should look like.
What should NHS GP patients take from these standards?
Patients do not need to memorise GMC paragraph numbers.
The useful question is what the standards mean during ordinary healthcare interactions.
You should be listened to
A clinician does not have to agree with every request,
but Good medical practice expects patient-centred communication
and attention to a patient’s concerns, circumstances and preferences.
You should receive understandable information
Decision making should involve information about relevant options, benefits and risks
so that the patient can take part in an informed decision.
Your information should be protected
The GMC treats confidentiality as a core professional duty.
Personal health information should not be accessed or disclosed without a legitimate reason.
Clinical limits should be recognised
Doctors and other registrants should work within their competence,
seek appropriate help and refer or escalate when the situation requires expertise beyond their role.
Records should support safe care
The GMC expects formal records to be clear, accurate, contemporaneous and sufficiently detailed for ongoing care.
Patients should not be disadvantaged for complaining
Good medical practice says complaints should be answered promptly, fully and honestly,
and a complaint must not adversely affect the care provided or arranged.
How Good medical practice applies in an NHS GP surgery
The GMC standards do not prescribe one national appointment-booking system.
They influence professional behaviour around triage, communication, prescribing,
documentation, delegation, continuity and patient safety.
Individual GP surgeries can use different operational systems.
GP situation
Relevant professional principle
Useful patient action
Reception asks why you need help
Safe care may require appropriate triage and teamwork.
Give a short, accurate description and mention if symptoms are worsening or urgent.
You disagree with a treatment decision
Patients should be supported to understand decisions and reasonable options.
Ask what the clinician recommends, why, what alternatives exist and what should make you seek further help.
Your symptoms continue
Good care includes recognising uncertainty, follow-up and patient safety.
Follow the safety-netting advice and contact the service again if symptoms persist, change or worsen.
Your record contains an error
Clinical records should be clear and accurate.
Contact the provider and clearly identify the entry you believe needs correction or clarification.
A medicine needs review
Prescribing should remain within competence and support safe care.
Ask whether you need a medicine review, monitoring test or clinician approval before the prescription can continue.
Our NHS medication practices guide
explains the patient side of prescription requests, medication reviews and pharmacy routes in more detail.
Standards do not guarantee instant GP access.
Good medical practice sets expectations for professional behaviour and safety.
It does not create appointment capacity, override local booking systems or guarantee that a patient receives the particular treatment they request.
For ordinary GP registration, appointments, prescriptions and results rather than professional regulation,
use our general NHS medical practice guide.
How to check whether a doctor is registered with the GMC
The GMC maintains the official UK registers for doctors, physician associates and anaesthesia associates.
Patients can search by a professional’s name or GMC reference number.
1
Open the GMC register.
Use the official “Our registers” service rather than a commercial directory.
2
Enter the registered name or GMC reference number.
If several people have similar names, use the additional register information to identify the correct person.
3
Choose the relevant profession or register filter.
The service allows searches including Doctors, Doctors on the GP Register,
Doctors on the Specialist Register, physician associates and anaesthesia associates.
4
Check registration and licence status.
For doctors practising medicine in the UK,
the GMC explains that the appropriate registration and licence status matter for the work they perform.
GP complaint or GMC concern? Choose the right route
One of the biggest misunderstandings around Good medical practice is assuming that every poor healthcare experience should go directly to the GMC.
The GMC says its role is focused on public protection and fitness to practise.
Problem
Usually start here
Why
Appointment delay or reception problem
GP surgery or provider complaints route.
This is normally a service issue rather than an individual fitness-to-practise case.
You want an explanation of treatment
Ask the clinician, practice or hospital team that provided the care.
The GMC says it cannot explain treatment to patients or make a registrant provide different treatment.
Repeated serious unsafe clinical behaviour
Provider complaint route and consider GMC if there appears to be an ongoing public-safety risk.
Serious or repeated unsafe behaviour may raise fitness-to-practise concerns.
Violence, sexual misconduct or serious abuse of professional position
Emergency services or police where relevant, and the GMC concern route.
These can raise serious public-protection concerns.
Doctor appears to be practising without a required licence
Check the GMC register and use the GMC concern route if necessary.
Registration and licensing fall directly within GMC regulation.
The GMC cannot do everything a complainant may want.
Its own concern guidance says it cannot explain your treatment,
force a registrant to provide different treatment,
fine a registrant,
or make them apologise.
What information helps when raising a GMC concern?
The professional’s name and workplace.
GMC reference number if known.
Dates of the relevant incident or incidents.
A clear explanation of what happened.
Copies of relevant correspondence or evidence.
Details of other people or organisations involved.
Information about complaints you have already made to the healthcare provider.
Duty of candour: what should happen if care goes wrong?
Good medical practice requires medical professionals to be open and honest with patients if something goes wrong.
The GMC’s detailed candour guidance explains what that means in practice.
Explain what happened
The patient should receive an honest explanation of what is known,
including likely short- and long-term effects where these are known.
Apologise
The GMC says an apology should be offered.
An apology does not by itself amount to an admission of legal liability.
Put matters right where possible
The professional or organisation should consider practical action or support that may reduce harm or correct the problem.
Report and learn
Relevant incidents should be reported through appropriate organisational processes so they can be reviewed and future patients protected.
GMC Good medical practice is not a CQC “Good” rating
The same word creates confusion, particularly for people researching GP surgeries in England.
The two systems answer different questions.
Question
GMC Good medical practice
CQC “Good” rating
What is it?
Professional standards framework.
Inspection/regulatory rating for a healthcare service in England.
Main focus
Professional behaviour, competence, communication, safety and trust.
Quality and regulation of the service or provider.
Who does it relate to?
GMC-registered doctors, PAs and AAs.
Registered healthcare and care services within CQC’s remit in England.
Does it book GP appointments?
No.
No.
Outside England:
do not assume CQC regulates every UK GP service.
Good medical practice is a UK-wide GMC professional framework,
whereas service regulators differ between UK nations.
A practical example of how a real NHS GP surgery can use its own appointment, prescription and registration processes while clinicians remain subject to wider professional standards.
Why local rules still matter
Good medical practice does not dictate whether a surgery uses Accurx, Anima, telephone triage or another booking method.
Patients should still check their own practice’s live instructions for operational tasks.
Good medical practice General Medical Council FAQs
What is Good medical practice from the General Medical Council?
Good medical practice is the GMC’s core professional-standards framework.
It sets out principles, values and expected professional behaviour for doctors,
physician associates and anaesthesia associates registered with the GMC.
When did the current Good medical practice guidance take effect?
The current framework came into effect for doctors on 30 January 2024.
The guidance was updated on 13 December 2024 when GMC regulation of physician associates and anaesthesia associates began.
What are the four GMC Good medical practice domains?
The four domains are Knowledge, skills and development;
Patients, partnership and communication;
Colleagues, culture and safety;
and Trust and professionalism.
The GMC says all four domains are equally important.
Does Good medical practice apply only to NHS GPs?
No.
It is a GMC professional framework for registered medical professionals across different specialties,
career stages and healthcare settings.
NHS GPs are included, but the guidance is not limited to general practice or the NHS.
Is Good medical practice the same as a CQC Good GP rating?
No.
Good medical practice is GMC professional guidance.
A CQC Good rating is a regulatory rating of a healthcare service in England.
They relate to healthcare quality and safety but describe different regulatory functions.
What should NHS GP patients expect under Good medical practice?
Patients should expect medical professionals to work within their competence,
communicate respectfully,
support informed decision making,
protect confidentiality,
keep appropriate records,
work safely with colleagues
and act openly if something goes wrong.
How can I check whether a doctor is registered with the GMC?
Use the official GMC registers.
Search using the professional’s registered name or GMC reference number,
then check the relevant registration and licence information shown on the GMC record.
Should I complain to my GP surgery or the GMC?
For appointment problems, service complaints or concerns about individual treatment,
usually start with the organisation that provided the care.
The GMC is mainly relevant where a doctor, physician associate or anaesthesia associate may pose a serious or ongoing risk to patient safety, public protection or public confidence.
What does the GMC duty of candour mean?
It means medical professionals should be open and honest when something goes wrong with care.
They should explain what happened,
apologise,
help put matters right where possible
and ensure relevant incidents are reported and reviewed.
Is Good medical practice a strict rulebook?
No.
The GMC describes it as an ethical framework.
Medical professionals must use professional judgement to apply the relevant standards to the circumstances they face while remaining able to justify their decisions and actions.
Independent information notice:
MedicalPracticeUK.org is not the General Medical Council, NHS, CQC or a GP surgery.
This article explains current public GMC guidance in plain English and does not replace the official professional standards.
Doctors, trainees, employers and anyone making a regulatory decision should use the live GMC guidance itself.
For personal medical advice or urgent healthcare, contact an appropriate NHS service rather than relying on this standards explainer.
