What is the GMC’s social media guidance?
The GMC's social media guidance sets out how Good Medical Practice standards apply when doctors use social media, both professionally and personally, and makes clear that the same duties of honesty, confidentiality, and professional behaviour that apply offline also apply online.
To put it simply, the GMC’s social media guidance is Good Medical Practice, interpreted for an online context. It applies across all platforms and usage, encompassing public, private, and even anonymous activity.
GMC advice makes clear that “the standards expected of you as a medical professional do not change because you are communicating through social media”.
So, you shouldn’t think of it as a separate set of rules to follow; rather, as an extension of your existing responsibilities.
The rest of this article will explore what is and isn’t permissible under the current guidelines, as well as the steps you can take to ensure you’re upholding Good Medical Practice standards online.
We’ll refer to the GMC’s social media guidance throughout, so make sure you’re familiar with the most up-to-date version. The document was refreshed in 2024, and older summaries may be unreliable.
What does the guidance permit?
A lot of things, actually.
When met with the opportunity to build an active social media presence, medical professionals often err on the side of caution and choose to stay offline.
But the GMC’s social media guidance is more lenient than most doctors realise, and their fear of overstepping the rules is contributing to a drought of expert voices in the public sphere.
As a medical professional, you can:
Maintain both professional and personal social media presences across major platforms, including Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
The GMC recognises that medical practitioners use social media for a variety of reasons, ranging from the personal to the professional.
This is considered acceptable, as long as you draw a clear line between clinical advice and personal views (Social Media Advice, GMC, 2024).
You can do this by setting your personal profile to private, avoiding contact with patients online, and clearly stating when you are commenting in a clinical capacity. There’s a difference between saying “in my opinion as a doctor” and “as your doctor, I recommend”.
According to GMC advice, it’s good practice to disclose your professional identity “if you’re using social media to comment on health or healthcare issues”. However, “if you’re discussing matters that aren’t related to your role”, there’s no obligation to name yourself (Social Media Advice, GMC, 2024).
Share health information, comment on medical policy, and engage in professional debate.
The GMC emphasises that “medical professionals, like anyone else, have the rights to freedom of belief, privacy and expression” (Using social media as a medical professional, paragraph 7, 2024).
So, you’re free to discuss health and medicine online; however, you must uphold Good Medical Practice standards and ensure “any information you communicate as a medical professional is accurate, not false or misleading” (Good Medical Practice, paragraph 89, 2024).
Advertise your services or endorse specific products.
GMC guidelines let you advertise your clinical services or endorse specific medical products, as long as you’re “open and honest about any interests you have that may influence (or could be seen to influence) the recommendations you make” (Using social media as a medical professional, paragraph 12, 2024).
Post anonymously.
Under GMC guidance, medical professionals can post anonymously if they’d prefer to keep their identity private online, though Good Medical Practice standards still apply.
It’s important to bear in mind that, in many cases, anonymous posts can still be traced back to their origin. If a doctor’s online conduct breaches the fitness-to-practise threshold, the GMC has a “legal duty to investigate” (Using social media as a professional, paragraph 9, 2024).
Where the boundaries actually lie.
You probably have more flexibility to utilise social media than you previously thought. But there are still clear limits to what’s considered acceptable, and it’s important to respect these when posting online.
Patient Confidentiality
You should never share confidential or identifying information about patients online.
This is a key dimension of Good Medical Practice, and the GMC clearly sets out what’s expected of you.
You must “maintain patient confidentiality and recognise and respect patients’ dignity and their right to privacy”, and you must not “disclose identifiable information about patients, unless you have explicit consent to do so” (Using social media as a professional, paragraph 18, GMC, 2024).
You should be cautious when posting visual media, as identifying patient information can sometimes appear unintentionally in the background of photos and videos.
Consult the GMC's dedicated confidentiality guidance for more information.
Maintaining professional and personal boundaries
It’s good practice to avoid interacting with patients online. The GMC advises against “connecting with patients on social media as it can cause professional boundaries to become unclear” (Social Media Advice, GMC, 2024).
If you’re contacted by a patient on social media, you should encourage them to seek medical advice through the proper channels.
Spreading disinformation
Do not post content that is inaccurate or contains undisclosed conflicts of interest. It’s important not to undermine or exploit the trust that patients have in medical professionals.
According to GMC guidelines, you must “take reasonable steps to make sure the information you communicate on social media is not false or misleading,” and you must not “misrepresent your experience and qualifications” (Using social media as a professional, paragraph 11, 2024).
Professional conduct
You should take steps to ensure that your conduct online remains professional, and that reasonable criticism towards others does not cross into harassment. This includes activity on anonymous or private accounts; the GMC treats statements made online as public, even if they originate from private channels.
The GMC’s social media guidance clearly states that you must not “use social media to abuse, discriminate against, bully, harass or deliberately target any individual or group” (Using social media as a professional, paragraph 14, 2024).
Be careful not to disparage colleagues online. This directly violates Good Medical Practice standards and risks undermining public trust in the medical profession.
Practical steps for staying on the right side
Medical professionals looking to stay on the right side of GMC social media advice should ask themselves three questions before posting online:
Does this content include or imply identifiable patient information?
Could a reasonable person read this as clinical advice directed at an individual?
Would I be uncomfortable if my responsible officer or the GMC saw this?
If the answer to any of these questions is yes, do not hit post. It’s never worth risking your medical integrity and reputation for the sake of a few likes on Facebook.
If you’re keen to learn more about GMC-compliant social media, you can find supplementary advice from the Medical Defence Union, the Medical Protection Society, and the British Medical Association.
What this means for doctors building a public profile
It's perfectly acceptable to maintain an active social media presence as a doctor under GMC guidelines.
You can even comment publicly on health-related topics and participate in political debate, as long as you strive to uphold high standards of accuracy and professionalism in your online conduct.
A reliable way to stay on the right side of GMC guidance is to treat your online conduct as you would a published article in a medical journal. This means clear attribution, honest disclosure, and no identifiable patient content.
Done well, the benefits of using social media as a doctor extend to the wider public. The GMC acknowledges that expert medical voices can help engage the public in discussions about health policy and facilitate their access to health information and the services available to them (Social Media Advice, GMC, 2024).
Ultimately, the GMC’s social media guidance should be thought of as a way to help medical practitioners use digital platforms without damaging their professional integrity. Its purpose isn’t to restrict online activity, and doctors can feel reassured that it’s more than possible to maintain a social media presence without violating official guidelines.
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