By Trish Svoboda

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly has declared the start of National Poison Prevention Week, scheduled for March 17-23. The University of Kansas Health System’s Poison Center, in collaboration with Safe Kids Kansas, wants to assure Kansans that Poison Help is always available, providing round-the-clock, no-cost advice for unexpected poison emergencies.

Whether you have a question or are facing an emergency, Poison Help is there to offer crucial information when it’s most needed. Contacting a Poison Center is quicker and more reliable than searching the internet. Statistically, 90 percent of poison incidents occur in American homes each year, and almost 70 percent of callers to Poison Help receive the necessary assistance right where they are, thus avoiding the expense of visiting a healthcare provider or hospital.

While calls about children are more frequent, those concerning teenagers, adults, and the elderly often involve more serious situations. In 2023, almost 60 percent of calls to the Kansas Poison Center were related to medicines or pharmaceuticals. However, a wide range of other substances, including household products, plants, mushrooms, pesticides, animal bites and stings, carbon monoxide, and various nonpharmaceutical substances, also commonly lead to poisoning incidents.

You can reach Poison Help by dialing 1-800-222-1222.