The Yellow Card Scheme is the UK system for collecting information on suspected Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) to medicines. The Scheme was founded in 1964 after the thalidomide disaster, and was developed by Dr Bill Inman. It is run by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM). Suspected ADRs are collected on all licensed medicines and vaccines, from those issued on prescription to medicines bought over the counter from a pharmacist or supermarket. The Scheme also includes all herbal preparations and unlicensed medicines. ADRs can be reported by anyone; this is usually done by healthcare professionals - including doctors, pharmacists and nurses - but patients and carers can also make reports.
The sort of ADRs that should be reported are:
Yellow Cards are available from pharmacies and a few are presented near the back of the BNF as tear-off pages.
Reports can also be submitted online through the MHRA-run Yellow Card Scheme website. The NHS Information Standards Board for Health and Social Care is currently developing an information standard for electronic submission of ADRs by IT systems. This is based upon the ICS E2B (R2) international standard