NEWS
OKLAHOMA CITY – As students across Oklahoma head back to school, the Oklahoma Poison Center reminds parents, caregivers and teachers that many everyday school-related items can pose poisoning risks if not handled or stored properly.
Common back-to-school risks include:
The Oklahoma Poison Center urges teachers and parents to program the Poison Help number, 1-800-222-1222, into their phones and post it in classrooms and nurses’ offices. The center is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Calls are free, confidential and answered by specially trained nurses, pharmacists and doctors.
Public safety tips include:
“Back-to-school is an exciting time, but it’s also when we see an increase in certain types of exposures – everything from children swallowing hand sanitizer to medication mix-ups in the nurse’s office,” said Kristie Edelen, Pharm.D., DABAT, managing director of the Oklahoma Poison Center.
“A few simple precautions – like properly storing supplies and knowing the Poison Help number – can make all the difference in keeping kids safe and healthy all school year long.”
The Oklahoma Poison Center, operated by the University of Oklahoma College of Pharmacy, provides free, confidential poison information and treatment advice 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Calls are answered by specially trained pharmacists and nurses who can assist with poison emergencies and answer questions about medications, chemicals, plants and other potentially toxic substances. For more information, visit pharmacy.ouhsc.edu.
About Oklahoma Poison Center
Oklahoma Poison Center is dedicated to providing expert advice and support in cases of poisoning and exposure to harmful substances. Our mission is to prevent poisonings and reduce their impact through education, prevention and providing emergency treatment recommendations. The Oklahoma Poison Center is a program of the University of Oklahoma College of Pharmacy.
The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences
The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences is one of the nation’s few academic health centers with all health professions colleges – Allied Health, Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health, Graduate Studies and School of Community Medicine. OU Health Sciences serves approximately 4,000 students in more than 70 undergraduate and graduate degree programs on campuses in Oklahoma City and Tulsa and is the academic and research partner of OU Health, the state’s only comprehensive academic healthcare system. OU Health Sciences is ranked 129 out of over 2,849 institutions in funding received from the National Institutes of Health, according to the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research. For more information, visit ouhsc.edu.
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