Poison Response Emergency

A poison is any substance that causes injury, illness or death if it enters the body because the body cannot tolerate that substance. The golden rule in giving First Aid for a suspected poisoning is never to induce vomiting, until you know what the poison is. Poison can get into the body via, skin, digestive system, lungs, or bloodstream.

The speed of reaction depends where the poison has entered from, for example if entered through the bloodstream, it can reach all parts of the body within minutes.

There are 4 means of poisoning:

Swallowed poisons: Can enter the body through food, drugs, alcohol, household and cleaning products, pesticides, plants, and etc. Some substances may not poison if taken in small quantity, but may become poisonous if taken in larger quantity.



Inhaled poison: A person can be poisoned by breathing in fumes, like gases.Example: carbon monoxide (car exhaust), carbon dioxide (from sewers, wells), chlorine (found in swimming pools), household products like glues, and paints.

Absorbed poison:  These poisons are absorbed through the skin, like plants (poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac), fertilizers, pesticides, and etc.

Injected poison:  They enter the body through bites or stings of insect, spiders, ticks, snakes, marine life etc., also through a medical hypodermic needle with drugs and medicine.

Identification and care:

Once you suspect that there are signals of poisoning around you check for the following signs:

Nausea and vomiting
Diarrhea
Chest or abdominal pain
Troubled breathing
Change of consciousness
Seizures, headache, dizziness, weakness
Irregular pupil size
Burning or tearing of eyes
Skin color change
Burning around the lips and tongue

Try to gather the following information from the person, bystanders, and containers, around you. This information will help the “Poison Control Center” or other professionals and allow them to give better and more appropriate care to the ill/injured:

1. The type of poison
2. The quantity taken
3. When it was taken
4. How much the person weighs

General care:

1. Remove the person from the scene, if its dangerous
2. Check for the A B C of the person
3. Care for life threatening conditions
4. If person is conscious, ask the questions to gather more information
5. Look for any containers, needles food that may have caused the poisoning
6. Call the “National Poison control Center” at 800-222-1222 or 9-1-1, or the local emergency number and give them all the relevant information.
7. Follow the directions of the professionals

If the person is violent or threatening, retreat to safety and wait for help to arrive. Do not give the person anything to eat or drink. If a person begins to vomit, place him in the recovery position, and save the vomit to be analyzed by the professionals.

Avoid direct contact with blood and any other bodily fluids by using disposable gloves. If you come in direct contact with blood or other bodily fluids from the injured, tell the EMS personnel at the scene.

While helping the injured, protect yourself from transmission of any diseases. Use preventive breathing barriers while giving rescue breaths.