Poison Prevention Week Wrap up from around Texas!
Back in March we celebrated Poison Prevention Week and all
month long educators worked extra hard to educate the public on the importance
of using poison control when you need it. Below is a wrap up of various center
activities! Remember, if you ever need poison control, call 1-800-222-1222.
North Texas Poison
Center
During National Poison Prevention Week 2018, the North Texas
Poison Center at Parkland focused on raising awareness and reducing the
incidence of unintentional poisonings, whether from accidental overdoses of
acetaminophen, intentional use of dangerous opioids, and all other exposures to
potentially toxic substances.  |
| North Texas Poison Center Regional Winner of Poster Contest |
Education is a key focus of the center. During NPPW18, NTPC
educators presented 4 community education programs, made 4 local media
appearances, awarded prizes for both the NTPC regional poster & video
contests, and participated in 12 community outreach events.
NTPC also held their 14th Annual Poison Jungle Safari at the
Caldwell Zoo in Tyler, reaching over 600 individuals with poison prevention
information.
Southeast Texas
Poison Center
Southeast participated in the PPW Poster contest, a cartoon
contest, and Facebook video contest. They also had a table set up for the whole
week at the City Hall of Texas City with Poison Center materials. The educator
did a presentation at Stay and Play Child Care Center and had a table set up
and attended it the whole day on Tuesday at Houston Northwest Hospital.
On
Wednesday, the educator had a table and attended it the whole day at the Public
Library in Brookshire. On Thursday, the educator presented the Facebook video
contest winners with their prize and made a video and took pictures. Lastly, on
Friday the educator had a table and attended it the whole day at Channel View
High School.
Texas Panhandle
Poison Center
Texas Panhandle Poison Center celebrated Poison Prevention
Week with a very successful Medication Cleanout™ in Amarillo, TX. During a 4-hour period, 637 vehicles drove
through to drop off medications. They collected over 2,000 pounds of
medications!
The goals of Medication Cleanout™ are to prevent poisonings,
prevent abuse, and prevent misuse while protecting the environment. People gather medications from their homes
that they no longer want or need and then they drive through at the Medication
Cleanout™ event where trained volunteers accept them. The medications are disposed of in an
environmentally friendly way and are no longer available for poisonings, abuse,
or misuse.
We also had the pleasure of presenting for four different
Head Start groups during the week.
Central Texas Poison
Center
The regional educator had several presentations and Otto
readings at Elementary schools. The center also held its annual Poison Safety
Safari at the Cameron Park Zoo. Lastly, the educator did a KWTX morning news
appearance to promote poison control.
West Texas Poison
Center
 |
| Winner State Poster from West Texas Poison Center |
During National Poison Prevention Week 2018, the West Texas
Regional Poison Center focused on raising awareness of our national 800 number
by participating in several health fairs and presentations throughout the
week. One of the most successful was at
the military base (Fort Bliss).
We brought the animals out and met with military families to
teach them about the potential dangers of living in the dessert. We even had a picture cut out for families to
take photos (picture below). We reached
over 500 people of all ages on that one day alone. We also participated in the state poison
prevention poster contest, held tours for young people to meet our poison
center staff, posted information on social media, and attended city council and
county commissioners meetings to receive local proclamations and resolutions in
celebration of poison prevention week 2018.
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