Over 180,000 Calls Made to the Poison Information Centre in the Last Year
Around 180,000 calls are made every year to the Poison Information Centre, half of these calls relate to children. A study last year from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) found that 2500 children are admitted to hospital every year with injuries from poisoning.
“Each year, 180,000 calls are made to Poisons Information Centres in Australia, with about half of these relating to children. The most common causes of poisoning incidents were all-purpose and hard surface cleaners, detergents, toilet bowl products, bleach, hand sanitisers, detergents and glow sticks,” ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard said.
Children under 5 years old are most at risk, and children under 2 are at the greatest risk says the study.
Statistics show the times those children at in the most danger when medications are being used, left out or when their routine or environment has been changed. So how can we lower the risk?
Better Health says the best protection is preventative and the following steps can be easily followed to lower the risk of poisoning in the home;
- Store all medication in a locked cabinet
- Store all cleaning and gardening chemicals out of reach in a locked cabinet
- Avoid distraction when giving medications and follow the dosing instructions
- Adhere to the motto ‘out of mind out of sight’
- Never leave batteries in reach of children
- Never underestimate a child’s ability to climb and reach
- Make sure the child resistant cap is on properly
- Keep dishwasher drawer locked
- Never store chemicals in drink bottles
Unfortunately accidents do happen, and the Poison Information centre (131126) is a 24 hour service that runs 7 days a week in each state of Australia. They say the symptoms of poisoning differ in every child depending on the severity, what the poison is, where the poisoning occurred and how much of the poison has been used. It is their recommendation that if your child is displaying any of these symptoms you should seek medical advice immediately;
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Drowsiness
- Falling over
- Tummy pain
- Fitting
The Poisons Information Centre and Better Health Victoria say the following first aid tips should be well known to every parent or care giver;
If a child has swallowed a poison
- DO NOT make the child vomit
- Give the child a small sip of water
- Call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26
If a child has poison in their eye
- Flood the eye with cool water from a running tap or a cup/jug
- Continue to flush for 15 minutes, holding the eyelids open
- If safe to do so, take a smartphone photo of the label or note down the product details
- Call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26
If a child has poison on their skin
- Remove contaminated clothing, taking care to avoid contact with the poison
- Flood skin with cool running water
- If safe to do so, take a smartphone photo of the label or note down the product details
- Call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26
If a child has inhaled a poison
- Immediately get the person to fresh air, without placing yourself at risk
- Avoid breathing in the fumes
- If it is safe to do so, open doors and windows wide
- If the victim isn’t breathing,start resuscitation and call an ambulance on 000
- If safe to do so, take a smartphone photo of the label or note down the product details
- Call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26
If you believe a child has been poisoned you should immediately seek medical help and dial 000 or call The Poison Information Centre 131126. Do not wait for symptoms to occur.
