Objectives To assess the quality and impact of medication safety outputs issued by the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) to the NHS in England and Wales.

Methods A multi-method study comprising (1) focus groups and interviews with NHS Chief Pharmacists and (2) an electronic survey of medical, nursing and clinical governance directors.

Results Acute sector respondents agreed that the medication outputs had a major impact on patient safety. Pharmacists welcomed national support for medication safety improvement, despite the resulting workload. Medical Directors were much less likely to be aware of alerts and Rapid Response Reports (RRRs) than their nursing and clinical governance colleagues. One key finding was the inability of around half of NHS trusts to communicate effectively and reliably with their junior doctors.

Conclusion Medication alerts issued by the NPSA have stimulated significant work to improve medication safety and are believed to have had an important impact on patient safety.