PROFILE OF SERVICES
1)
Provide 24 hours/day emergency poisoning information to the public
and healthcare professionals. The scope of services include accidental
and self-poisoning with drugs or chemicals, exposures to plants
or mushrooms, pesticides, animal and insect envenomations, food
poisoning, drug abuse or withdrawal, and occupational or environmental
exposures to chemicals.
2) Educate the public on the dangers of poisons by developing
and promoting poison prevention materials and programs.
3) Train healthcare professionals in the diagnosis and treatment
of acute and chronic poisoning.
4) Protect public health by providing expertise and resources
for public safety issues such as hazardous material spills, contamination
of consumable goods, and product tampering.
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DESCRIPTION
The Virginia Poison Center is an emergency telephone resource of
poisoning information available to the public and health care professionals
throughout central and eastern Virginia. The Center was created
over 30 years ago by the Department of Pediatrics, and in 1997,
began its affiliation with the Department of Emergency Medicine,
and in 1998 became CERTIFIED as a REGIONAL POISON CENTER by the
American Association of Poison Control Centers. Emergency phone
lines (toll free outside of Richmond) are staffed by specially trained
registered nurses (Specialists in Poison Information), who are knowledgeable
about toxic substances and treatment for victims exposed to potential
poisons. Most calls result from exposures to medications (overdoses
or adverse reactions), food poisoning, plants and mushrooms, alcohols
and a wide variety of household products such as cleaning substances,
cosmetics and pesticides. The Center also handles calls concerning
insect, snake and spider bites, drug abuse, and occupational or
environmental exposures to chemicals. In 2001, the Virginia Poison
Center responded to over 30,000 calls for assistance from all areas
of the state. Most poisoning exposures are accidental, and approximately
55% occur in young children. Because of the expertise and resources
of the Center, over 75% of patients are treated over the phone at
the site of the exposure, thereby preventing unnecessary costs associated
with ambulance dispatch, emergency room visits and hospitalization.
Follow-up calls are made in many cases in order to assess home treatment
and monitor for development of delayed toxic effects. For serious
poisonings, patients are referred to the nearest appropriate health
care facility, and recommendations for the most appropriate, cost-effective
care are provided to the primary care physicians. Board-certified
toxicologists are available 24 hours/day for consultation. More
information concerning the Virginia Poison Center may be obtained
by calling (804) 828-4780 during business hours.
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The Virginia Poison Center is dedicated to decreasing the morbidity,
mortality, health care costs, and overall occurrence of poisonings
in its service region. A primary objective is to substantially reduce
unnecessary outpatient visits and hospital admissions, as well as
improve the quality of care provided to patients with accidental
or self-poisoning. The Virginia Poison Center maintains certification
as a Regional Poison Center by the American Association of Poison
Control Centers, assuring the public and healthcare community that
it maintains the highest standards recognized among poison centers.
