Freedom of Information request about Northern Ireland reporting data for Yellow Cards (FOI-21-427)
Published 28 June 2021
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Thank you for your FOI request dated 21st April 2021, where you requested the following information:
“Northern Ireland reporting data for 2019/20 and 2020/21, a breakdown of data for a specific Trust, and in particular, for specific groups of staff and yellow card reports submitted by pharmacy staff (pharmacists and pharmacy technicians) employed by the Northern Trust”
All of the data provided below relates to UK spontaneous suspected Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR) reports received directly from healthcare professionals (not via pharmaceutical companies) by the MHRA. Data provided for 2021 includes ADR reports up to and including 13 May 2021. Please note that the accuracy of the data relies on the postcode being provided by the reporter. Where reporters have only provided an email address and not a postal address these reports will not be included in the numbers provided below.
1. Table 1: Direct UK spontaneous suspected ADR reports received from Northern Ireland between 01/01/2019 and 13/05/2021.
| Number of Yellow Card Reports | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 2019 | 2020 | 2021* |
| England | 17284 | 16123 | 40591 |
| Northern Ireland | 307 | 282 | 1064 |
| Scotland | 920 | 933 | 3493 |
| Wales | 2886 | 2028 | 2731 |
*Up to and including 13/05/2021.
2. Table 2: Direct UK spontaneous suspected ADR reports received from Northern Ireland clinical commissioning groups between 01/01/2019 and 13/05/2021
| Number of Yellow Card Reports | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Health and Social Care Trust | 2019 | 2020 | 2021* |
| Belfast Commissioning Group | 135 | 97 | 332 |
| Northern Commissioning Group | 42 | 49 | 196 |
| South Eastern Commissioning Group | 24 | 16 | 132 |
| Southern Commissioning Group | 48 | 50 | 169 |
| Western Commissioning Group | 59 | 70 | 236 |
*Up to and including 13/05/2021.
3. Table 3: Direct UK spontaneous suspected ADR reports received from Pharmacy professionals** in the Northern Commissioning Group between 01/01/2019 and 13/05/2021.
| Year | 2019 | 2020 | 2021* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Yellow Card reports received | 25 | 27 | 42 |
*Up to and including 13/05/2021.
**includes: Community Pharmacist, Hospital Pharmacist, Pharmacist, Pharmacy Assistant/Technician, and Pre-Reg Pharmacist.
In your email you also requested information on plans to establish a regional Yellow Card Centre in Northern Ireland. The MHRA continues to support and encourage Yellow Card reporting throughout the UK, including Northern Ireland. The MHRA commissions five Yellow Card Centres (Northern and Yorkshire, North West, West Midlands, Scotland, and Wales) whose primary role is to educate and promote reporting locally. MHRA also works closely with all Devolved Administrations, including Northern Ireland where there is an ongoing dialogue to support this through working with the Department of Health in Northern Ireland.
I hope that you will find this information useful. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your contribution to the Yellow Card Scheme and look forward to the continued support to raise awareness across Northern Ireland. This will allow us to continually appraise the safety of vaccines and medicines in the UK.
If you are dissatisfied with the handling of your request, you have the right to ask for an internal review. Internal review requests should be submitted within two months of the date of this response; and can be addressed to this email address.
Yours sincerely,
FOI Team,
Vigilance and Risk Management of Medicines Division