Even as a medical student it's important to be aware of the guidance produced for doctors by various organisations so you can appropriately apply it to your studies. Learning about this guidance now will put you in a much better position when you qualify and will help you act professionally, and in your patient's best interests.

Standard values

Guidance specifically tailored towards medical students and medical schools includes three pieces of literature produced by the General Medical Council (GMC).

'Medical students: professional values and fitness to practise' is a joint piece of guidance produced by the GMC and the Medical Schools Council (MSC). It provides medical students with advice on the standards of professional behaviour expected of them and information about student fitness to practise.

As doctors of the future it's important that you understand the responsibilities associated with studying medicine. You don't want to put your career at risk before it has begun, so make sure your behaviour doesn't cast doubt on your suitability to become a doctor.

Although the GMC isn't responsible for regulating medical schools, it does set standards that medical education and training in the UK should reach. This is currently laid out in 'Tomorrow's Doctors', which will be replaced in January 2016 by 'Promoting excellence: standards for medical education and training'. It's available to read now, and places the emphasis on patient safety being the first priority.

Helping yourself

Also for medical students, the GMC and MSC have also produced guidance on 'Supporting medical students with mental health conditions', which reassures students that help is available and encourages them to seek appropriate support and advice from their own GP or from the medical school and university. This guidance can also apply to those students who may also have a physical disability and may need extra support to help them succeed.

All doctors, once qualified, will need to be registered with the GMC and must abide by the GMC's codes of ethics and guidance. This guidance has expanded rapidly over the last few years and it is important for you, as a student, to get to grips with it in order to prepare you for your life in clinical practice.

All of the guidance and supplementary guidance can be accessed from the GMC website. Here we have collected some links to guidance you'll need to be aware of in order to comply with the standards set by the regulator, regardless of the speciality you enter or the grade at which you are practising:

Where to turn - guidance on guidance

Where to turn - guidance on guidance