A practical guide to using the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME) standards. WFME 1: mission and objectives

Preparing a medical school for institutional review can be a challenging undertaking for any institution requiring an understanding of the international standards being used and adequate preparation and planning (MacCarrick et al. in Med Teach 32(5):e227-e232, 2010). This series examines each of the nine standards developed by the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME in Basic Medical Education: Global Standards for Quality Improvement, University of Copenhagen Denmark, 2003) with practical advice on their use in both self-review and independent accreditation processes. The WFME standards and their purpose are described and the use of these standards to 'drive' the quality improvement agenda in undergraduate medical education is also discussed.