VCU’s Virginia Poison Center Celebrates National Poison Prevention Week

By Eric Peters

Virginia Commonwealth University’s Virginia Poison Center joins The American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) and poison centers across the country in celebrating the 50th anniversary of National Poison Prevention Week from March 18 through 24.

Since 1962, the President of the United States has proclaimed the third week of March as National Poison Prevention Week to raise awareness about the dangers of poisoning.

“Much progress has been made in poisoning prevention in the 50 years since National Poison Prevention Week was first observed,” said Dr. Rick Dart, AAPCC president. “However, there is still much work to be done; poisoning is now the leading cause of death from unintentional injuries in the U.S. – ahead of motor vehicle crashes and guns.”

VCU’s Virginia Poison Center, which serves all of central and eastern Virginia, assists approximately 100 callers per day. More than half of them call about a potential poisoning that involves a young child.

The fast, free and expert help the center provides ensures that 75 percent of these poison cases are managed safely right at home, without hospital visits. The center estimates this collectively saves the government, individuals and insurance companies more than $10 million annually.

“Every eight minutes, someone calls a poison center, so there is still much work to be done to educate our communities about poison prevention and the life-saving services offered by the Virginia Poison Center,” said Evelyn Waring, VPC director of public education. “New poisons keep emerging that must be detected and prevented.”

In honor of this year’s National Poison Prevention Week, VCU’s Virginia Poison Center will team up with the VCU School of Pharmacy to send pharmacy students to a dozen area preschools to teach lessons about poisons in the home. More than 40,000 stickers with the poison center’s emergency telephone number have been sent to childcare providers across the region.

The center will also feature daily poison prevention themes and messages throughout the week on its Facebook page.