---
title: "Report and review incidents"
description: "Log an incident (a bump, bite, fall, or allergic reaction), record medical care, report it to state licensing, collect the parent's signature, and print or download the report as a PDF."
type: guide
updated: 2026-10-09
canonical_url: https://help.nestlicare.com/owners/safety/report-and-review-incidents
roles: ["super_admin", "center_admin", "teacher"]
platforms: [web, ios, android]
---
When something happens to a child, an incident report is your record of what, when, and what you did about it. Teachers usually file them from the mobile app in the moment; admins can file and review them on the web.
## File an incident report
1. Go to **Families & Children → Incidents** and click **Report Incident**.
2. Fill in the **Report Incident** form:
- **Child** (required)
- **Center** and **Room** (required): where it happened.
- **Date** (required) and **Time**.
- **Type**: Fall, Bite, Scratch, Bump/Bruise, Allergic Reaction, Illness, Behavioral, or Other.
- **Body Location**: like `left knee` or `forehead`.
- **Description** (required): what happened.
- **Action Taken**: what you did in response.
- **Witnesses**: type a name and click **Add**; add as many as you need.
- **Photos**: attach photos if you have them.
- **Medical care**: First aid only, Seen by a doctor or clinic, Emergency room, or Hospitalized. Tick **911 / EMS called** if an ambulance came. For anything beyond first aid, add **Where treated**, **Treated by**, and **Diagnosis or instructions**.
3. Click **Report Incident**.
The family is notified automatically as soon as you file. They read the report in their app and, in states that require it, sign it there (see [Parent signatures](#parent-signatures)).
You can add or correct the medical care later with **Edit medical care** on the report. Parents often call back with what the doctor said.
## Report to state licensing
Most states want to hear from you when an injury needs care beyond first aid, usually within 24 hours or by the next business day. When a report records a doctor visit, the emergency room, a hospital stay, or a 911 call, the report shows a **Report to** card with your state's licensing agency, the deadline, how to report, and a link to the rule.
1. Report the incident to your state the way the card describes (phone, online form, or email).
2. Click **Mark as reported** and add the date, how you reported it, and any reference number you were given.
Reports still waiting show **State report due** or **Overdue** in the list, and **Needs state report** filters to them. Parents never see this card or your licensing record.
NestliCare uses your center's address first. If that has no state, it uses your organization's address, then your Stripe business address, then where most of your families live. The card says where the state came from. If it's wrong, an admin can click **Change** on the card and pick the right state; NestliCare saves it on the center.
The deadlines come from each state's licensing rules as we last checked them. Rules change, so treat the card as a reminder and check your state's requirements.
## Parent signatures
Some states want the parent's signature on the incident report itself, not just a note that they were told. Texas, for example, requires the parent to sign within 48 hours (26 TAC §746.707). NestliCare can ask for it in the parent's app.
**When a signature is asked for.** Go to **Settings → Operations → Incident reports** and choose a **Parent signature** option:
- **Required where your state requires it (Texas)**: the default. Texas centers ask for a signature on every report; other states don't.
- **Always required**: every report asks for a signature within 48 hours, wherever you are.
- **Never ask for a signature**: parents acknowledge reports with a tap, as before.
**What the parent does.** The parent opens the report in their app, taps **Review and sign**, draws their signature, types their full name, and agrees to sign electronically. That signature counts as their acknowledgement.
**What you see.** The report shows a **Parent signature** section. Once the parent signs, you see their drawn signature, name, and the time they signed. Until then it says **Awaiting parent signature** with the due time, in red once it's overdue. **Needs parent signature** in the list filters to reports still waiting.
**Reminders.** NestliCare reminds the parent automatically, one day after the incident and again six hours before the deadline, through their incident notifications. To nudge them yourself, click **Send reminder** on the report. You can send one an hour.
Parents sign from the NestliCare iOS or Android app. Signing needs app version 6.3 or later; until families have it, reports stay at **Awaiting parent signature**. If you need signatures before then, print the report and have the parent sign by hand, or set **Parent signature** to **Never ask for a signature** for now.
None of the states we checked requires the parent to sign in person, and Texas and Oklahoma explicitly accept electronic records and signatures. Each signature is stored with the parent's typed name, the time, and their agreement to sign electronically.
## Review incidents on the web
Go to **Families & Children → Incidents**. You'll see a table of reports with **Child**, **Date / Time**, **Type**, **Status**, **Parent Notified**, and **Room**. The tabs across the top filter by status: **All, Open, Resolved, Closed**. Use them to see what still needs follow-up.
Click a row to open the report. The **Print** and **PDF** buttons at the top of the panel are covered in [Print or download a report](#print-or-download-a-report). For a whole date range, use the Incidents report instead: see [Review incidents over a period](/owners/reports/review-incidents).
The **Needs** filters above the table (admins only) narrow the list to reports still waiting on something: **Parent notification**, **Action taken**, **Needs state report**, and **Needs parent signature**.
Click any row to open the full report in a side panel: description, action taken, witnesses, photos, the **Change Status** buttons and **Notify Parent**. A parent opening or acknowledging a report doesn't change its status. You move it to **Resolved** or **Closed** yourself when follow-up is done.
The same reports also appear on the child's own record. Open the child from **Families & Children → Children**, go to **Documents**, and the **Incident reports** section at the top lists every report filed for that child. Tap one to open it.
## Print or download a report
Open the report (from the Incidents page or the child's Documents tab) and use the buttons at the top of the panel:
- **PDF** downloads the report as a PDF, ready to file, email, or hand to a licensing inspector. It holds every field on the report: child and date of birth, center, room, date and time, what happened, action taken, witnesses, medical care, when the parent was notified and acknowledged, the parent's signature, and the photos. It also includes your state licensing record and a blank **Director review** line for your own file.
- **Print** opens a quick printable copy in your browser, with signature lines for staff and parent to sign by hand.
In the mobile app, open the report and tap the share button (iOS) or **Share PDF** (Android) to save the same PDF to Files, print it, or email it.
Parents can download their own copy from the report in their app. The parent copy leaves out your licensing record and the director review line. NestliCare never emails the PDF to anyone on its own.
For a range of dates, for example a licensing visit or a monthly safety review, use **Reports → Incidents** and click **Export CSV** or **Print**. See [Review incidents over a period](/owners/reports/review-incidents).
## Edit or delete a report
Admins can fix a report after it's filed. Open it and use the buttons near the top of the panel:
- **Edit report** lets you correct the child, room, date and time, type, body location, description, action taken and witnesses. If you move it to a different child, that child's family is notified and the report is removed from the first family's app.
- **Delete** removes the report for staff and for the family. Add an optional reason (for example, "Filed on the wrong child"). We keep a copy on record in case your licensing agency ever asks for it.
Once a parent has signed a report, it can't be edited. You can delete it and file a new one.
## Find a report in the app
On your phone, incident reports live in two places:
- **A child's reports.** Open the child's profile, tap **Documents**, and look at the **Incident reports** section at the top. Tap a report to read it in full.
- **All reports.** On the **Dashboard** tab, tap the **Incident** tile. It opens the full list, with a **+** to file a new report.
Earlier versions of the app could file a report but had nowhere to list them afterwards, so the child's Documents tab showed an empty **Incident report** folder. If you do not see the section, update the app from the App Store or Google Play. Until then, the web dashboard has every report.
## Review incidents in the mobile app
From app version 6.0, the same list is in the app: **Admin tab → Incidents**, under Families & Children. Filter by **Open**, **Resolved** or **Closed**, search by child, type or description, and tap a report to read it, move it to Resolved or Closed, or notify the parent. A child's own reports also appear on their profile under **Documents → Incident reports**. On an older build, incident review is web-only; teachers can still file from the app.
## Keeping records clean
- Be specific and factual in the **Description** and **Action Taken**. These are the fields parents and regulators read.
- Add **Body Location** and **Photos** for anything physical. They make the record clear later.
- Move a report to **Resolved** or **Closed** once follow-up is done, so your Open list only shows what still needs attention.
Teachers report incidents from the NestliCare mobile app right after they happen, so nothing waits until they're back at a computer. Those reports show up in this same list for you to review.