About the specialty
Genitourinary Medicine (GUM) involves the investigation and management of sexually transmitted infections and HIV. It is mostly outpatient based but does include inpatient care of HIV infection. It can also include more specialised services such as young people's clinics, genital dermatoses, sexual dysfunction, and psychosexual medicine and outreach services for sex workers and drug users.
Essential requirements of a genitourinary physician are enjoying contact with patients, being able to work as part of a multidisciplinary team and good communication skills. It is important to be non-judgemental and feel comfortable about discussing sensitive issues such as sex.
There is also a public health element to the specialty with the need to perform partner notification (contact tracing), and to collect and report surveillance data in order to detect changing trends of infections.
Entry into Genitourinary Medicine training is possible following successful completion of both a foundation programme and a core training programme. There are two core training programmes for Genitourinary Medicine training:
- Internal Medicine Training (IMT)
- Acute Care Common Stem - Internal Medicine (ACCS-IM)
Latest news and developments
A new curriculum for dual training in GUM and Internal Medicine was implemented in August 2022. Trainees entering GUM in August 2021 will transfer to the new curriculum unless it is not safe or practical for them to do so. Trainees who started training prior to August 2021 can remain on the current curriculum and will not be required to transfer but will be encouraged to transfer where possible. Please see our transition page for general information and the specialty guidance provided below.
Recent events
National GUM Taster Day Programme: 6th October 2025
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
National GUM Taster Day 2025: Dr Schoeman’s Curriculum and recruitment Presentation
Time | Topic | Speaker |
| 09:15 – 09.25 | Intro/Housekeeping | Dr Vitasta Raina ST5 GUM/ HIV SpR Chelsea and Westminster NHS Trust |
| 09:25 – 09.55 | Why GUM & HIV? | Dr Michael Brady, Consultant Sexual Health & HIV, King’s College Hospital, National Advisor for LGBT Health, NHS England |
| 09:55 – 10.30 | The GUM/GiM Curriculum and recruitment | Dr Sarah Schoeman, Consultant GUM, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, GUM SAC co-chair |
| 10:30 -11.00 | MSM and PrEP | Dr Andy Williams, Consultant HIV/GUM, The Royal London Hospital, GUM SAC Co-chair |
| 11:00 – 11.10 | Break | Break |
| 11:10 – 11.40 | Working as a GUM/GiM dually accredited Consultant | Dr Michael Ewens, Consultant Physician: Genitourinary & Internal Medicine, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust |
| 11:40 – 12.10 | Dermatology in GUM and HIV | Dr Annabelle Leong |
| 12:10 – 12.25 | Students and Trainees Association for Sexual Health & HIV (STASHH) | Dr Nuala Hurst Marshall STASHH executive committee member |
| 12:25 – 13.10 | Lunch | Lunch |
| 13.10 – 13.30 | Working as a GUM Consultant in a non-urban area | Dr Nadia Khatib, Consultant in HIV & Sexual Health, Torbay Hospital |
| 13:30 – 13:45 | GUM SpR Training Experiences: Academia & Research | Dr Claire Norcross Academic SpR Wellcome Trust Clinical PhD Fellow |
| 13:45 – 14:00 | GUM SpR Training Experiences: Academia & Research | Dr Manik Kohli, GUM SpR Mortimer Market Centre & Academic Clinical Fellow |
| 14:00- 14: 20 | GUM SpR Training Experiences: Out of Programme Experience | Dr Holly Middleditch, GUM SpR King’s College Hospital |
| 14:20 – 14:40 | GUM SpR Training Experiences: Dual accreditation in GUM/GiM | Dr Sasha Payagala, GUM Consultant Chelsea & Westminster Hospital |
| 14:40 – 15:15 | Young people and safeguarding | Dr Alison Barbour, Consultant in HIV & Sexual health, Croydon University Hospital |
| 15:15 – 15: 25 | Break | Break |
| 15:25 – 16:00 | HIV inpatients & cases | Dr Lewis Haddow , Consultant in GUM/ HIV at Kingston hospital and HIV lead |
| 16:00 | Pregnancy, breast feeding and HIV | Dr Laura Byrne, Consultant in HIV Medicine, St George’s Hospital, BHIVA pregnancy guidelines chair |
| 16:30 | Q&A, wrap up and close | Dr Katia Prime, consultant in genital urinary medicine at St George’s Hospital and SAC curriculum lead |
GUM Resident doctor & trainer training day: The 2022 Genitourinary Medicine Curriculum and microscopy training requirements: 26 February 2025
Part 1
Part 1:
- Welcome, Background to the 2022 curriculum & Capabilities in Practice
- What do trainers and resident doctors need to know about the IMS2 curriculum and preparing for IMS2 ARCP?
- IM Q&A sessionPart 4
- Microscopy curriculum requirements, Dip GUM & competency assessment for microscopy
- BSIG microscopy e learning
- Practical aspects of Microscopy
- Micro Q&A session 2
Part 2
Part 2:
- Workplace based assessments and SLEs
- ePortfolio
- Interface between specialty training and IMS2
- ARCP / PYR
- Academic training
- Trainee experience
- Q&A session
Part 3
Part 3
- Welcome & background to Microscopy in the GUM curriculum
- Why microscopy is important: Case presentations
- Micro Q&A session 1
Part 4
Part 4
- Microscopy curriculum requirements, Dip GUM & competency assessment for microscopy
- BSIG microscopy e learning
- Practical aspects of Microscopy
- Micro Q&A session 2
Curriculum
The curriculum for each specialty defines the process of training and the capabilities needed for the award of a certificate of completion of training (CCT). The curriculum includes the assessment system for measuring trainees’ progress comprising workplace based assessment and knowledge based assessment.
A new curriculum for GUM and Internal Medicine has been approved by the GMC and was implemented in August 2022. Please see the forms and guidance section for documents to support trainers and trainees.
Genitourinary Medicine 2022 Curriculum (Updated July 2024)
The previous GUM curriculum is available below. Earlier versions of the curriculum are no longer available online but copies can be requested from curriculum@jrcptb.org.uk.
ARCP Decision Aids
The ARCP decision aid for each specialty defines the targets that have to be achieved for a satisfactory ARCP outcome at the end of each training year. The ARCP decision aid for the GUM 2022 curriculum appears below.
GUM ARCP decision aid for trainees on the Aug 2022 GUM/IM curriculum (updated November 2025)
The ARCP decision aid for trainees on the 2016 curriculum post-August 2022 is given below.
GUM ARCP decision aid for trainees post Aug 2022 on the 2016 GUM curriculum (updated November 2025)
Forms and guidance
Curriculum guidance
The following guidance has been produced by the GUM SAC to support the implementation of the new curriculum.
Rough guide to GUM updated Aug 2025
Transition guidance 2022 GUM curriculum
Implementation of IM training in GUM
Q&As on the new curriculum, recruitment and workforce
Transition and gap analysis guidance
Mapped GUM and GIM competencies to support GIM CESR applications
The SAC has prepared the following guidance to support trainees who wish to apply for specialist accreditation in General Internal Medicine (GIM) via the CESR route. The first document maps the GUM curriculum to the current GIM curriculum, the second is a mapping for the new Internal Medicine stage 2 curriculum. Further information is available on our CESR webpage.
Mapped GUM and GIM curricula to support GIM CESR applications