Committed to Saving Lives Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
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CENTRAL OHIO POISON CENTER 2008 ANNUAL REPORT 50th Year Anniversary Edition 1958–2008 COMMITTED TO SAVING LIVES Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow • • • • • • • • • • • • • OUR MISSION The mission of the Central Ohio Poison Center is to provide and promote the highest standard of care to the poisoned patient, health care providers and community. TABLE OF CONTENTS From the Directors ...........................................................................................................................1 The Reality of Poison in 2008 ...........................................................................................................2 50 Years of Caring: What We Do Everyday .......................................................................................3 Welcome Dr. Heath A. Jolliff .............................................................................................................4 50 Years of Teaching: Professional Health Training ...........................................................................5 Central Ohio Poison Center Celebrates 50 Years ..............................................................................6 Be Poison Smart® A Legacy: Its Beginning and History .....................................................................7 COPC Service Region and Calls by County .......................................................................................8 50 Years of Service: Call Volume and Human Exposures by Age .......................................................9 50 Years of Service: Reasons for Exposures and Medical Outcomes ................................................10 50 Years of Service: Treatment Site of Callers and Management Site of Hospitalized Patients .........11 50 Years of Education: Poison Prevention ................................................................................. 12-13 50 Years of Collaboration: Community Partner Network ................................................................14 50 Years of Visiblity: News Media ..................................................................................................15 50 Years of Value: Financial Investment ..........................................................................................16 50 Years of Consultation: Member Hospital Program .....................................................................17 50 Years of Teamwork: The Staff ....................................................................................................18 Publications ...................................................................................................................................19 Presentations ................................................................................................................................20 FROM THE DIRECTORS A message from the Medical Director: Much has changed in the Central Ohio Poison Center since our beginning 50 years ago, except our mission. 50 YEARS AGO: TODAY: • COPC call center located in a closet and took one • 34 COPC professionals housed in a 3,200 square call every day or so foot facility and take 450 calls per day • 80% of calls from the general public and the • Almost all calls came from physicians additional 20% from health care professionals • Complete poison center reference library and • Three reference books and 1,000 5”x 8” index electronic toxicology database with information on cards were available more than 1.3 million poisons and products • Three board-certified medical toxicology specialists • Center was supported by a single pediatrician supporting efforts 50 years ago there was a much smaller variety of household products, but many of their ingredients were more dangerous, labels rarely listed ingredients and containers lacked child-resistant caps. Today, while we handle a wider variety of products in the home, the most dangerous ingredients have been banned, concentrations of chemicals are lower, child resistant caps are used and are saving lives and toxic ingredients are often listed on the product label. 50 years ago medications, aspirin being the most prevalent, caused 50% of the poisonings, with iron and barbituates also very common. Common household poisons included lead, kerosene, lye, iodine tincture, bichloride of mercury and “washing soda”. Today our most common medication poisonings are analgesics, such as acetaminophen and opiates, sedatives/hypnotics/antipsychotics and topical medications. The most common non-medication poisonings are cosmetics and personal care products, household cleaning substances and foreign objects, such as a coins and buttons. 50 years ago we frequently recommended removing a swallowed poison from the patient’s stomach, either by inducing vomiting or pumping the stomach at the hospital. Today, we recommend emptying the stomach in far less than 1% of poisoning. 50 years ago diphtheria and polio had recently been conquered, and poisoning was the most common medical emergency facing children. Today poisoning is the most common cause of accidental death in Ohio. 50 years ago the Central Ohio Poison Center was here to help prevent poisonings and, when poisoning happened, to give the best treatment advice possible. Today, our mission to protect people from poisoning and to ensure the highest standard of care for the poisoned patient, holds steadfast. Marcel J. Casavant, MD, FACMT, FACEP Medical Director, Central Ohio Poison Center Yesterday, today and in years to come, we strive to keep children and adults safe from the dangers of poisoning through education, prevention and treatment. I encourage you to read this report to discover what the poison center and its dedicated staff have accomplished throughout the last 50 years, the millions of lives we’ve helped and saved, and our plans for the future. 1 S. David Baker, PharmD, DABAT Managing Director, Central Ohio Poison Center THE REALTY OF POISON IN 2008 • Poisoning is the second leading cause In 2008, the COPC handled 239,763 calls of injury-related death to children and from the 44 counties we serve in Ohio: adults in the United States. • 149,699 human exposure calls and calls • Almost 2.5 million human exposures requesting poison or drug information were reported to poison centers • 90,064 follow-up calls were conducted to monitor the victims’ condition and provide • The American Academy of Pediatrics’ additional advice statistics reveal that 60% of all children will need help from a poison • 57% of exposure calls concerned children five years of age and younger center before the age of six. • Over 16 % of exposure calls were • More than 4.3 million calls were from physicians and other health care managed by poison centers. professionals treating poisoned victims SOMEONE calls a Poison Center every 13 seconds A CHILD needs a Poison Center every 30 seconds An ADULT needs a Poison Center every 39 seconds in the U.S. 1940s 1952 2 Mr. Gdalham starts recording management of poisonings American Academy of Pediatric’s study shows that on index cards –standard database 51% of children’s accidents are the result of ingestion of potential poisonings 50 YEARS OF CARING: WHAT WE DO EVERYDAY Everyday we impact hundreds of lives in your community: • A two year old who ate a mushroom from the backyard • A seven year old who swallowed a battery • A teenager who overdosed on Benadryl with suicidal intent • A 25 year old who mixed cleaning chemicals was found seizing and vomiting • Both a 40 and a 90 year old who drank cleaner in a cup, thinking it was water The Central Ohio Poison Center (COPC) saves Physicians, first responders and other health care hundreds of people like these everyday in your professionals call the poison center for consultation community. Supervised by a Board-Certified Medical and advice on treating poisoning victims when the Toxicologist, our trained and certified pharmacists patients do need to go to the hospital for additional and nurses tirelessly provide poison assessment and medical treatment. treatment, medication information and prevention information to callers 24 hours a day, 7 days a The COPC also educates people on poison week, every day each year, for 50 years. Our advice prevention to keep them safe and to reduce poison is confidential and offered at no charge to callers exposures. Poison information packets are sent to all through our toll-free hotline, 1-800-222-1222. callers who would like to receive them. Over eighty-nine percent of the people calling The American Association of Poison Control Centers from home are treated over the telephone by and the Centers for Disease Control analyze poison our Nationally Certified Specialists in Poison center data for early warning signs of epidemics Information, keeping people at home and at ease and poisoning outbreaks. The Ohio Department of without unnecessary trips to the hospital. Our Health, local and county public health departments, specialists conduct follow up telephone calls with the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and the families at home to provide additional advice if Drug Administration and Emergency Management needed and to ensure a positive outcome. Without a Agencies all benefit from the Central Ohio Poison poison center, half of our callers would have gone to Center’s toxico-surveillance. an emergency department, most unnecessarily. 1953 1957 3 First poison center launches in Chicago National Clearinghouse for poison control centers is established, distributing consumer product information to poison centers on index cards WELCOME Early