Notify us of an event

Independent Healthcare Providers must notify us when a particular event occurs as stated in the Independent Healthcare (Wales) Regulations 2011.

Notify us of an event

 

Regulations 30 and 31 of the Independent Health Care (Wales) Regulations 2011 state that the registered person of an independent hospital, independent clinic, or independent medical agency must notify us about particular events that occur relating to patient safety.

The events in question relate to patient safety, and whilst there is a legal requirement to notify HIW of their occurrence, it is also expected that the registered person has the necessary policies and procedures in place to reduce the risks of their occurring in the first instance; appropriately manage the situation if and when it occurs; and ensure the occurrence of the identified risk is appropriately managed so as to avoid future occurrences.

The information provided on the notifiable event forms enables us to assess a healthcare provider’s ability to comply with the 2011 Regulations and that patients are being appropriately safeguarded.

Failing to notify HIW of a notifiable event within the timescales stated in the legislation can result in HIW taking enforcement action; this in turn could lead to a criminal prosecution and/ or the cancellation of your registration.

Notifiable events

An overview of the events that must be notified to HIW can be found in the  Guidance for Registered Managers and Providers. The guidance also sets out timescales and information required for notifications. 

How to report a notifiable event

When notifying us of a notifiable event, please use the relevant notification form from the list below. Please refer to the guidance available to ensure the required details are provided when submitting notification forms and/or any supporting investigation reports. 

Whilst the Regulations require the registered person to notify HIW; it is recognised that this may not always be possible. Therefore, the registered person may need to delegate the notification task to authorised individuals. Details regarding Authorised Individuals is available in the HIW guidance document. 

How to submit your completed notifiable event form

Completed forms and any associated information should be submitted to HIW via Objective Connect (OC). If you do not have an OC account, please contact hiwnotifiableevents@gov.wales

If any issues arrive resulting in the inability to submit electronic forms to HIW via OC, please submit a complete paper copy. Further detail on this method is available in our guidance.

What happens after you have reported an event

Once HIW has received a notification we will send an acknowledgement email to the authorised individual who submitted the form within two working days. The acknowledgment email will include a HIW reference number for use on all follow up correspondence related to the event and deadline date for submission of follow up information. If having notified HIW of an event you don’t receive an acknowledgement within two working days, please contact HIW immediately.

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