21-month-old child partially ingests an antidepressant drug...A two-year-old boy takes allergy pills from a bottle he finds...A woman inhales chlorine gas created when she uses two products (bleach and a toilet cleaner with an acid) to clean the toilet.

All three potentially life-threatening situations occurred in Iowa during the past year and resulted in calls to the Iowa Statewide Poison Control Center. The Center’s specially trained nurses provided expert advice in concert with emergency care delivered at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Operated in partnership by St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center/Iowa Health System in Sioux City and UI Hospitals and Clinics, the Iowa Statewide Poison Control Center provides a convenient way for Iowans and health care professionals to immediately access information about dangerous substances and what actions to take.

Last year, the Center became an even broader resource when it joined 64 other poison centers nationwide in a campaign to raise awareness about a new national hotline for poison emergency treatment and advice (800-222-1222).

Tammy Noble, education coordinator for the Center, describes the hotline as an invaluable new resource for Iowa families. “No matter where you are, you will always know the number for the experts at the local poison center,” she says.

All other numbers previously used to contact the Iowa center continue to work, but are no longer advertised. When traveling outside the state, Iowans are connected to poison experts at the designated poison center for that region, thereby linking them with health care specialists most familiar with local concerns and the local health care community.

Mary Ross, pharmacy assistant director and coordinator of the UI Hospitals and Clinics portion of the Iowa Statewide Poison Control Center, says, “We’re very happy to be partners in providing this service. This is a great example of how Iowa health care facilities and the Iowa Legislature (which approved the use of tobacco settlement funds for the project) are collaborating to serve the public by linking with a valuable nationwide resource.”

“In an emergency, when every second counts, this information is vitally important and could save a life”

—Tammy Noble