Report an enquiry incident
Report enquiry errors and near misses to UKMi to improve patient safety, share learning, and identify risks across the MI/MA network.
To report a publication-related incident go to Report a publication incident.
Definitions
Error: An action or decision that deviates from what is correct, intended, or expected. For reporting purposes, an error is one that reaches the end user before being identified and corrected. An example is an incorrect response leaving the MI/MA service.
Near Miss: An incident with the potential to cause harm that is identified before reaching the end user. An example is an incorrect response detected and corrected before leaving the department.
Near misses that provide useful learning for the wider network should be reported.
What should be reported
Please report:
- Errors associated with the enquiry answering process
- Near misses associated with the enquiry answering process where there is valuable learning to share across the network
Staff in Training
For incident reporting purposes, a trainee is any member of staff who is not authorised to work independently for the relevant type of enquiry.
Report:
- Any trainee-related error that leaves the department
- Any trainee-related near miss that could provide useful learning across the network
Why Report to UKMi
Reporting helps UKMi to:
- Identify recurring risks and trends across MI/MA services
- Share learning across the network
- Develop recommendations to reduce future incidents
- Improve patient safety
- Highlight workforce, workload, resource, or process issues affecting service quality
All incidents are reviewed by the UKMi Quality and Risk Management Group (QRMG). Reporting to UKMi does not replace local Trust incident reporting requirements.
How to Report an Incident
Submit a report
Complete the online reporting form: https://forms.office.com/e/wPNkxCc31Y
No login, password, or NHS-enabled device is required.
Information you will be asked for
| Question | Note |
| What type of enquiry incident are you reporting | Use the definitions above to decide if the incident is an error (left MI/MA) or near miss (error corrected before it left MI/MA) |
| How has the incident been identified | Indicate how the incident came to light. Select ‘other’ for anything not listed and provide details. For example, ‘through workload management’ may be from reviewing the previous day’s completed enquiries. |
| When did the incident occur | Give the date that the error or near miss occurred. It may have been detected later. |
| Please state the title of the enquiry as it appears on your enquiry form | Copy and paste the enquiry title. This will help identify any duplicate incident entries. |
| Please tick the relevant enquiry categories | Select the main enquiry categories as they appear in your enquiry recording system. If the enquiry category does not appear, then select ‘other’ and provide the unlisted category. |
| Please provide a full description of the incident | Provide a description of the facts for a third person to understand. For example:
What happened: Provide a clear and factual account of the event. How it happened: Explain the sequence of events leading to the error or near miss. Why it happened: Identify any contributing factors or root causes you have identified. Name of the medication: Specify the drug(s) involved, including the brand and generic names. Dosage and administration: Include details about the prescribed dose, route of administration, and frequency. |
| At what point in the enquiry answering process did the incident occur | Try to identify the main stage of the process at which the incident occurred. For example, the incorrect drug name in the answer may have stemmed from the wrong drug name being taken in during the documentation stage. |
| What was the probable cause of the incident | Select the main contributory factors that led to the incident occurring. |
| What was the potential risk to the patient | If the enquiry did not relate to a patient, select ‘no patient involved’. Otherwise, decide what the impact on the patient could have been if the near miss or error reached them undetected. Negligible risk – no harm to patient possible Minor risk – monitoring required Moderate risk – temporary harm requiring intervention Major risk – permanent harm Catastrophic risk – intervention required to sustain life or contribution to patient death |
| What immediate actions have been taken to correct the incident outcome | These are the actions taken on detecting the error or near miss such as contacting the patient or prescriber to inform them, and any further information or advice given. |
| What actions are planned to reduce the risk of incident recurrence | Follow-up actions taken to prevent recurrence such as updating a standard operating procedure (SOP), training MI/MA staff, or discussing the incident at the next team meeting. |
| Please provide your email address in case the UKMi Incident Reporter needs to contact you for further information | Identifiable details of your submitted incident will only be seen by the UKMi Incident Reporter. Once they have reviewed your submitted incident, they may contact you for more facts. Your details will not be shared any further.
The QRMG may occasionally request further information following a review of the collated report; the UKMi Incident Reporter will contact you on their behalf. |
Protect confidentiality
Do not include:
- Patient names
- Staff names
- NHS numbers
- Dates of birth
- Any other information that could identify an individual
Any identifiable information found within submissions will be removed before review by QRMG.
Report locally
Reporting to UKMi does not replace local incident reporting requirements.
Follow your organisation's incident reporting process and take any immediate actions required to reduce risk.
Keep local records
MI/MA services should maintain a local record of submitted reports to support local governance and Key Performance Indicator (KPI) monitoring.
What happens after submission
The UKMi Incident Reporter collates incidents and presents them to QRMG for review each quarter. QRMG analyses trends, identifies risks, and develops recommendations for the network.
Issues affecting the wider network may be escalated to the UKMi Executive.
Learning from incident reports
QRMG publishes regular outputs to support learning across the network, including:
- Detailed incident reports (members only)
- Summary reports
- Incident spotlights on recurring themes
These resources can be used for local governance meetings, staff training, quality improvement activities, and risk management discussions.
Last reviewed: July 2026
