Dr Alison Cave: Pharmacists are on the frontline of medicines safety – and your reports make all the difference

This #MedSafetyWeek (3-9 November), the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is highlighting the vital role pharmacists play in keeping medicines and medical devices safe.

Every day, pharmacists help patients use medicines safely and effectively. We are aware you are often the first point of call when something doesn't look or feel right - whether supporting patients with prescribed treatments, advising on over-the-counter medicines, or responding to questions about products purchased elsewhere.

As more people manage their care at home, receive medicines by post and buy products online, your advice and vigilance are vital. Pharmacists are uniquely placed to guide patients, spot emerging issues, and report concerns that could prevent harm to others.

Real-world reports, real-world impact

From January 2025 to the end of September 2025, pharmacy professionals submitted 10,734 reports to the MHRA's Yellow Card scheme - the UK's system for collecting concerns about medicines and medical devices - averaging 1,193 reports per month. Healthcare professionals as a whole contributed 48% of all reports during this period, with direct industry reporting at 30% and patients, parents and carers at 22%. Your contribution as pharmacists represents the largest volume among all healthcare professional groups, and reflects the trusted position you hold in your communities, and the daily opportunities you have to identify potential safety concerns.

These reports have real impact: in the past year, they've informed safety advice on weight loss medicines,strengthened patient monitoring requirements for certain treatments, and triggered product recalls. Reports also support our criminal investigations into fake or unlicensed medicines; or research such as our Yellow Card Biobank study in collaboration with Genomics England, exploring why people respond to medicines differently.

Supporting patients worried about counterfeit or unsafe medicines

In recent months, pharmacists have reported increasing patient concerns about fake, unlicensed, or imported medicines and medical devices bought online or through social media. These products may look genuine, and are becoming more sophisticated, but can contain incorrect or dangerous ingredients.

The MHRA's #FakeMeds campaign provides clear guidance on spotting these products, helping pharmacists advise patients confidently.

Practical steps pharmacists can take:

• Advise on safe sourcing: Recommend registered UK pharmacies or verified online suppliers. Check for a registered pharmacy in Great Britain, and check for a registered online seller in Northern Ireland. Warn patients about common red flags such as unusual domain names, payments methods, or no prescription requirement.
• Check products for warning signs: Poor packaging, missing leaflets, incorrect labelling, or inconsistent branding may indicate a problem. Use the #FakeMeds check-list to help spot a fake.
• Report concerns: Use the MHRA Yellow Card scheme for suspected fake, unlicensed, or faulty medicines and healthcare products. You don't need to be certain there's a problem - if something doesn't seem right, it's worth reporting. Reports are quick and feed directly into the MHRA's safety and enforcement work.
• Support patient reporting: Encourage patients to report suspected side effects or product concerns, even if they're unsure what caused them. Every bit of information helps create a clearer national picture of risk. For patients who need language support, the Yellow Card site has Google Translate, and you can help anyone who finds the form challenging by assisting with details such as medicine names, doses and dates from your dispensing records.
• Stay updated: Subscribe to MHRA alerts and encourage colleagues to do the same - so you can respond quickly if guidance changes.

Working together to protect patients

Pharmacists have always been on the frontline of patient safety. In a world where medicines and medical devices are more accessible - and sometimes more vulnerable to misuse - your insights, advice and reporting are more important than ever.

Medicine safety works best when it's built into everyday conversations. A brief conversation about what to expect from a new medicine can help patients feel confident in recognising when something isn't right. These small moments, alongside the formal services you provide, make safety a shared responsibility between you and your patients.

We know your priority is always the patient in front of you. But your reports help protect others too. When a patient presents a questionable product, describes unexpected side effects, or asks about something bought online, taking a few minutes to report it, or helping them to do so, contributes to a national picture that keeps everyone safer.

By reporting safety concerns and supporting patients to do the same, pharmacists help the MHRA act faster to prevent harm and maintain confidence in the medicines we all rely on.

For more on safe sourcing and counterfeit awareness, visit fakemeds.campaign.gov.uk. To report a concern, go to yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk.

Thank you for your continued support of the Yellow Card Scheme. We appreciate reporting takes time out of already very busy days, but every single report matters. Please do continue to report so we can keep patients safe together.

Notes to editor

This article was originally published in The Pharmacist.