Objective To analyze the current research status, hot spots and dynamic frontiers of literature related to near misses in nursing using visual knowledge mapping, in order to provide a reference for the future development of near misses in nursing. Methods The literature related to near misses in nursing was searched in the Web of Science core collection from its establishment to August 2022, and visualized and analyzed in terms of the number of articles, journals and keywords. Results A total of 289 papers were included, and the annual publication volume showed a trend of year-on-year growth, with the United States taking the first place in terms of publication volume and the initial formation of a core author team, and the hotspots of proximity research in the nursing field were mainly focused on patient safety, safety management, and identification reporting. Conclusion The research related to proximity errors in nursing started late, and the current research on proximity errors is not comprehensive enough. Since the occurrence of proximity errors can have adverse effects on patients, nursing staff and medical institutions, it is suggested that nursing managers should increase the importance of this issue, pay attention to the frontier development, and conduct in-depth related research.