Reporting Incidents and Near Misses

Reporting incidents and near misses supports meeting S 2.9. For dental nurses this means treating near misses as sources of learning rather than waiting for harm to occur.

Learning and improvement happen when reflection, feedback and evidence are linked to action. The purpose is safer practice and clearer professional development, not paperwork for its own sake.

In dental practice these issues often appear in small moments: a routine task performed without review, a patient question that falls outside usual scope, an unclear handover, a colleague under pressure, a new system, or a sense that something is not right. Professional self-management requires noticing those moments and choosing an appropriate, safe response.

Practical markers

• Notice: what the patient, team, task or system is showing before the concern becomes normalised.
• Check: your role, competence, current guidance, local policy and the support available.
• Ask: for advice or feedback when uncertainty, workload, emotion or change could affect judgement.
• Act: take a proportionate next step - pause, clarify, hand over, record, report, reflect or escalate.
• Review: whether the action improved safety, learning, wellbeing or confidence for future practice.

Simple speaking-up language can work well: "Can I check the current guidance or ask for feedback before we make this routine?" It is respectful and names the safety, learning or wellbeing concern clearly enough for someone else to act.

SPF behaviour links

Opportunities for improving clinical services and managing or mitigating risks help dental nurses connect self-management with patient safety, professional development and team trust.