Archived ethical guidance

View our archived ethical guidance from 1993. It includes withdrawn copies of Good medical practice, Confidentiality and Consent. We have grouped the 40 pieces of archived guidance under eight different categories. This reflects the categories on our current guidance page. If you would like to see our guidance that was in force before 1993, including the blue books, please send an email to gmc@gmc-uk.org.

Our current guidance

All the archived guidance on this page has been superseded. See Ethical guidance for doctors for our current guidance.

Ethical guidance for doctors

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Good medical practice

Good medical practice 2006 cover

Good Medical Practice - 2006-2013 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2006. It was withdrawn in 2013.

Good medical practice 2001 cover

Good Medical Practice - 2001-2006 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2001. It was withdrawn in 2006.

Good medical practice 1998 cover

Good Medical Practice - 1998-2001 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1998. It was withdrawn in 2001.

Advertising 1997 cover

Advertising - 1997-1998 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1997. It was withdrawn in 1998.

Good medical practice 1995 cover

Good Medical Practice - 1995-1998 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1995. It was withdrawn in 1998.

Advertising 1995 cover

Advertising - 1995-1997 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1995. It was withdrawn in 1997.

Pandemic Influenza 2009 cover

Pandemic Influenza 2009 (pdf)

This guidance was withdrawn in 2009.

Pandemic Influenza 2009 - 2012

Pandemic Influenza 2009-12 (pdf)

This guidance was first published in 2009. It was withdrawn in 2012.

Confidentiality

Confidentiality 2009 cover

Confidentiality - 2009-2017 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2009. It was withdrawn in 2017.

Confidentiality - reporting gunshot and knife wounds 2009 cover

Confidentiality: reporting gunshot and knife wounds - 2009-2017 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2009. It was withdrawn in 2017.

Confidentiality - reporting concerns to the DVLA or DVA 2009 cover

Confidentiality: reporting concerns to the DVLA or DVA - 2009-2017 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2009. It was withdrawn in 2017.

Confidentiality - disclosing records for financial and admin purposes cover 2009

Confidentiality: disclosing records for financial and admin purposes - 2009-2017 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2009. It was withdrawn in 2017.

Confidentiality - disclosing information for education and training purposes 2009 cover

Confidentiality: disclosing information for education and training purposes - 2009-2017 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2009. It was withdrawn in 2017.

Confidentiality - disclosing for insurance, employment or similar purposes 2009 cover

Confidentiality: disclosing information for insurance, employment and similar purposes - 2009-2017 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2009. It was withdrawn in 2017.

Confidentiality - disclosing information about serious communicable diseases 2009 cover

Confidentiality: disclosing information about serious communicable diseases - 2009-2017 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2009. It was withdrawn in 2017.

Confidentiality 2004 cover

Confidentiality - 2004-2009 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2004. It was withdrawn in 2009.

Confidentiality 2000 cover

Confidentiality - 2000-2004 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2000. It was withdrawn in 2004.

Communicable diseases 1997 cover

Communicable diseases - 1997-2006 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1997. It was withdrawn in 2006.

Confidentiality 1995 cover

Confidentiality - 1995-2000 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1995. It was withdrawn in 2000.

HIV and AIDS the ethical considerations - 1995 cover

HIV infection and aids - 1995-1997 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1995. It was withdrawn in 1997.

Communicable diseases 1994 cover

Communicable diseases - 1994-1997 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1994. It was withdrawn in 1997.

HIV and AIDS the ethical considerations - 1991 cover

HIV infection and aids - 1993-1995 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1993. It was withdrawn in 1995.

Consent & shared decision making

Consent: patients and doctors making decisions together - 2008-2020 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2008. It was withdrawn in 2020

Making and using video or audio recordings of patients 2002 cover

Making and using video or audio recordings of patients - 2002-2011 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2002. It was withdrawn in 2011.

Patient consent 1998 cover

Patient Consent - 1998-2008 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1998. It was withdrawn in 2008.

Making and using video or audio recordings of patients 1997 cover

Making and using video or audio recordings of patients - 1997-2002 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1997. It was withdrawn in 2002.

Candour and raising concerns

Raising concerns about patient safety 2006 cover

Raising concerns about patient safety - 2006-2012 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2006. It was withdrawn in 2012.

Leadership and management

Acting as an expert witness 2008 cover

Acting as an expert witness - 2008-2013 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2008. It was withdrawn in 2013.

Reporting criminal and regulatory proceedings 2008 cover

Reporting criminal and regulatory proceedings - 2008-2013 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2008. It was withdrawn in 2013.

Conflicts of interest 2008 cover

Conflicts of interest - 2008-2013 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2008. It was withdrawn in 2013.

Writing references 2007 cover

Writing references - 2007-2012 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2007. It was withdrawn in 2012.

Management for doctors 2006 cover

Management for doctors - 2007-2012 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2007. It was withdrawn in 2012.

Conflicts of interest 2006 cover

Conflicts of interest - 2006-2008 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2006. It was withdrawn in 2008.

Reporting criminal and regulatory proceedings 2006 cover

Reporting criminal and regulatory proceedings - 2006-2008 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2006. It was withdrawn in 2008.

Management in health care 1999 cover

Management in healthcare - 1999-2006 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1999. It was withdrawn in 2006.

Prescribing

Good practice in prescribing and managing medicines and devices - 2013-2021 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2013. It was withdrawn in 2021.

Prescribing medicines 2008 cover

Prescribing medicines - 2008-2013 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2008. It was withdrawn in 2013.

Prescribing medicines 2006 cover

Prescribing medicines - 2006-2008 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2006. It was withdrawn in 2008.

Care at the end of life

Withholding or withdrawing life-prolonging treatments 2002 cover

Withholding or withdrawing life-prolonging treatments - 2002-2010 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2002. It was withdrawn in 2010.

Maintaining professionalism

Personal beliefs 2008 cover

Personal beliefs - 2008-2013 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2008. It was withdrawn in 2013.

Maintaining boundaries 2006 cover

Maintaining boundaries - 2006-2013 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2006. It was withdrawn in 2013.

Intimate examinations 2001 cover

Intimate examinations - 2001-2006 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2001. It was withdrawn in 2006.

Intimate examinations 1996 cover

Intimate examinations - 1996-2001 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 1996. It was withdrawn in 2001.

Research

Conducting research 2002 cover

Conducting research - 2002-2010 (pdf)

This guidance was published in 2002. It was withdrawn in 2010.