#MedSafetyWeek takes place from 2nd to 8th November 2026 and is the eleventh campaign coordinated by Uppsala Monitoring Centre. This year’s theme is “Side effects: don’t ignore them, report them” and it speaks directly to prescribers and educators.
Why do side effects go unreported?
Underreporting is well documented and Uppsala Monitoring Centre estimates that fewer than 10% of side effects are reported. The reasons will sound familiar to anyone who teaches prescribing. People assume a reaction is mild or already well known, or that someone else must have reported it. They aren’t sure the medicine was the cause, or they simply don’t know how or where to report.
It matters because every report adds to the evidence the MHRA uses to identify possible safety concerns and investigate emerging patterns. Where action is needed, that can lead to changes in product information and stronger warnings.
Bringing Yellow Card reporting into teaching
The MHRA Yellow Card website publishes case studies showing how reports have led to regulatory action, and they make good discussion material because students can follow the route from a single report to a change in practice. You could also ask students to look up the Interactive Drug Analysis Profile for a drug from that week’s teaching and talk through what the reported reactions tell them.
The MHRA points out that reports from young people are as high quality as those from adults, yet there are only around 100 a year, according to Professor Dan Hawcutt at the University of Liverpool.
To help make reporting easier, reports can be made on medicines, vaccines, blood products and e-cigarettes, as well as medical devices including software, apps and artificial intelligence. Users can sign in with NHS login, and the Yellow Card app lets them build a watch list of medicines to receive MHRA news and alerts.
The BPSA MHRA Yellow Card scheme assessment
Our free MHRA Yellow Card scheme assessment has been developed in collaboration with the MHRA and all of the material has been written and reviewed by MHRA content specialists. It is aimed at all healthcare professionals who want to understand why reporting suspected safety concerns matters for patient safety.
The assessment is formative and takes about an hour to complete across two modules. It uses the same technology and layout as the Prescribing Safety Assessment which is taken by thousands of medical students each year, so anyone who has sat the PSA will find it familiar. Educators may wish to set it as a task for a cohort during #MedSafetyWeek or add it to existing teaching on pharmacovigilance.
The module is now CPD accredited by the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine, valid until July 2028 and completing both modules is worth 1 CPD point.
Further resources
Uppsala Monitoring Centre coordinates #MedSafetyWeek and provides free campaign materials for anyone who wants to take part.
#MedSafetyWeek campaign: who-umc.org/medsafetyweek
BPSA MHRA Yellow Card scheme assessment: portal.bpsassessment.com/product/yellow-card-scheme
MHRA Yellow Card website: yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk