Poison Hotline Needs Antidote to Survive Cutback in Funding

A small office at the end of a long hallway in a Mediterranean-style medical building is the Sacramento command post in a state battle against accidental poisonings, especially among young children.

Inside, an emergency hotline rings 200 times a day. Health care professionals are poised around the clock to calmly dispense advice to distraught callers--typically anxious parents whose children have sipped hair coloring, splashed nail polish in their eyes or encountered any number of other hazardous substances.

Nurses and pharmacists can immediately tap into a computerized database or reach for books on topics from snake venom to poisonous plants to provide guidance.

But state officials warn that the phones could be silenced later this year unless a proposal aimed at guaranteeing funding is enacted.

The California Poison Control System costs about $6 million a year. Starting in September, the state could lose federal funds that make up most of the poison control budget, said Assemblyman Kevin Shelley (D-San Francisco).

Poison control programs “save many more dollars than that, as well as saving people the trouble of unnecessary emergency room visits,” Shelley said at a Capitol news conference last week.

Shelley plans to introduce a bill designed to generate about $5 million a year through a tax on insurers, pharmaceutical companies or firms that make hazardous products.

The money would be lumped together with about $1 million in state funds already earmarked for poison control to make the Sacramento center and three others around the state permanent.

Shelley’s proposal, for the first time in several years, puts the spotlight on a service that parents around California have come to rely on during home emergencies. Poison control centers are designed to be the first line of defense in situations that can cost a life or create a disability.

Under the system set up several years ago, the state contracts with the University of California at the San Francisco School of Pharmacy to operate four poison control centers. Besides Sacramento, the offices are in San Diego, Fresno and San Francisco.

County-USC closed its poison control center a few years ago after the UC system won the contract.

The central emergency number, (800) 876-4766, is called every day by scores of Californians.

Last fall, Heather Keane, a nurse from Cameron Park, dialed it when she awoke one morning to find her infant daughter, Caitlyn, eating scraps of paint from the headboard of her bed.

“I was assured it wasn’t a life-threatening situation,” said Keane, who was worried that Caitlyn may have been eating paint with lead. “There were no temporary or permanent side effects.”

More than half the calls to the network are like Keane’s--reactions to a child of 5 or younger having swallowed bleach or some kind of drug. Of the 300,000 calls made to the centers last year, 36,000 originated in Los Angeles County; 14,000 in Orange County and 3,500 in Ventura County.

Not all the calls are about people; some are from pet owners asking what to do after their dog has eaten snail pellets or antifreeze.

“Animals can get into trouble as easily as humans can,” said Judith A. Alsop, a pharmacist who oversees the Sacramento center.

Historically, poison control centers in California have had difficulty in funding their programs because public assistance has been minimal.

A 1992 Assembly bill would have assessed fees on manufacturers of some poisonous products to fund the centers. Gov. Pete Wilson rejected the measure, saying: “It is unfair to assess a business because its product can be misused.”

Still, a National Health Foundation study commissioned by the state recommended that a single agency oversee poison control programs throughout the state. At the time, there were six centers taking calls. The one operated by Los Angeles County served about half the state’s population.

The state sought bids to operate a unified program, and about two years ago UC emerged as the winner.

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Home Safety Tips

Most unintentional poisonings involve children younger than 2 years old. The following are some preventive measures to take around the home.

* Always store medication and household products in original packaging and locked away out of the reach and sight of children.

* Buy medicine and household products in child-resistant packaging.

* If you suspect someone has been poisoned, call the California Poison Control System at (800) 876-4766 right away. Do not wait for the person to look or feel sick. The center should be your first source of information in an emergency, even before a doctor or emergency room.

* Keep a bottle of syrup of ipecac in your home. Use it only when told to do so by the poison control center.

* Dispose of potential poisons (such as cleaners or medicine) when they are no longer needed. Some materials, such as crystal or granular drain cleaners, are so highly toxic that parents of small children should avoid keeping them in the home.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention