New York State Poison Control Network - Annual Report on 2001 Data

Appendix Four

Public Education Programs

Target Group Title or Media Subject

Children Under Five

Wizard of Woe
  • A storybook on tape which tells the tale of poison prevention with storybook supplements.
  • Big book program.
  • Puppet show animated story time program.
ABC's of Poison Prevention A teaching guide for early education in poison prevention.
Power Over Poison Pre-School A complete teaching package for pre-school, day care centers and nursery school. The kit contains a teacher's manual with suggested activities and audio-visual and reinforcement materials.
Mom and Me Program Designed to teach mothers how to keep their family safe from accidental poison exposures and provides an introduction to the services of the poison center. Provides poison prevention materials and tips for making the home "poison-safe."
Look Alike Teaching Kit Features many poisonous and non-poisonous household items that "look-alike."
Head Start Standards for home safety and poison prevention for staff, parents and children are taught with activity sheets for children and a video for parents and teachers.

School Children

Power Over Poison Elementary School A game show format, complete with a teacher's guide, a 28-minute video for children, a 10-minute video which provides background information for the teacher, reinforcement activities and an audio tape of the Power Over Poison song. Children learn about poison prevention in this enjoyable format by answering questions about the forms of poisons, how and why poisonings occur and what everyday products can be poisonous. Reinforcement materials are provided throughout the year.
Babysitters Workshop Designed to bring awareness to the baby sitter on the potential poisons found in and around the home. This program includes the forms of poisons, how and why poisonings occur, what to do if an accidental poison exposure occurs while babysitting children and how to contact their local poison control center.
What is a Poison Center: Provides the history and background of the Regional Poison Center. Review poison prevention safety education for use in the home. Learn about the staff of the poison center and the possible career options.
CD Rom "Poison Awareness" interactive computer software that teaches children about poisons and prevention.
Candy Medicine Poster An educational tool for clinics, schools, pediatricians' offices and WIC centers which shows similarities between candies and medicines.

Teens and Pre-Teens

Inhalants Awareness for Students Reintroduces the concepts of poison prevention, specifically focusing on poisons in their environment including inhalants. Topics include what are inhalants, short and long term effects, sudden sniffers death and how to help a friend who is using.

Adults/Parents

Inhalants Awareness for Parents Promotes awareness about how some common household products are being abused by our children. Identifies common inhalants around the home, who, what, why and when of inhalant use including sign and symptoms, short and long term effects, sudden sniffers death and what to do if you find your child using.
Activated Charcoal in the Home Home use of charcoal is taught in a variety of written materials.
Herbal Products Articles have been written for newsletters by network staff to educate both the public and health care professionals on the dangers associated with herbals.
Parent Packets Contain information literature, phone stickers and a coupon for syrup of ipecac.

School Nurses/Teachers

In —Service Training Workshop for teachers, nurses, department of health employees, etc., provides a complete background on the poison center and its services. The who, how and why of poisonings and what to do in the event of a poison exposure. Participants receive educational program training and materials for implementing a complete curriculum. Participants become part of the Educator Resource Network.
Educator Resource Network Consists of trained volunteers who conduct poison prevention awareness and information programs for organized groups in their community.
School Nurses Poison Prevention Programs A statewide effort to provide poison prevention and education to school nurses through video and specially designed curriculum.

Seniors

Medication Management in the Elderly Designed to teach the growing elderly population how to better manage their medications. It includes information on drug interactions, label reading, poison center services and medication management devices.
Treating Yourself With Care Teaches seniors about medication logs, common drug interactions and side effects.

Special Groups

Power Over Poison for the Hearing Impaired Previously mentioned programs adapted for the hearing impaired student through the use of signed and close-captained video.
Women, Infants, Children Nutrition Program/Public Health Nursing Program/Department of Health Educational program to educate WIC staff, so they in turn can educate their clients about poison center services and distribute literature and telephone stickers.

Other

Media Packets News releases and public service announcements distributed to newspapers, television, radio and magazines. Media packets target various poison prevention issues, concerns and trends in an effort to heighten public awareness.
Newsletters A quarterly publication featuring seasonal topics in poisoning exposures and prevention education. Designed as an educational tool for the public communities.
Tours and Orientations Tours and orientations are available to both professional and public groups. Public groups are provided an age related program in poison prevention and a tour of the center. These groups include day care centers, preschools, girl scouts, boy scouts and teachers.
Informational Displays/Fairs Poison prevention informational displays, literature distribution and prevention education provided at school, community or organizational health and wellness fairs.
Fairs with Presentations Similar to above mentioned with the inclusion of a scheduled talk or presentation.
Conference/Presentations: Professional presentation provided at a conference or symposium on poison related topics.
Teaching Days Poison prevention program delivered to all students in a targeted grade level or multi-grades depending on school size. Half day or whole day programs available and can be tailored for age appropriate, experiential programs.
Pharmacy Network Centers work with local and chain pharmacies to distribute poison prevention literature to the public and cooperate in advertising poison prevention week.
Video Library Available for loan to teachers, parents, community groups. Includes "Billie and the Poison Roundup," "Poisonality."
Internet Access Internet access allows public inquiries regarding information about the poison center and allows the public to ask basic information questions (non-exposure) that can be answered on a daily basis.