Marcus Fernandez

More than 2 million people reported poison exposures by calling poison control centers located throughout the United States in 2018. Florida call centers alone handled 110,246 callers reporting poison exposures. The vast majority of poisonings reported nationwide, 76.7%, were unintentional. When negligence of a caregiver, health care provider or other party contributes to poisoning injuries or death, a victim or victim’s family may have a claim for compensation. Facts about victims of poisoning Infants and toddlers account for about 70% of poisonings in the U.S., resulting in injuries. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hospital emergency departments in the U.S. treat more than 300 children daily for poisoning. Of the 300 children, ranging in age from newborns to young adults up to 19 years of age, two of them die each day from the effects of poisonous substances. These cases go beyond curious and unsupervised children getting into medicine cabinets or ingesting chemicals that cause injury or death. They also include the epidemic of injuries and deaths attributed to abuse of prescription pain medications. Even taking medications exactly as ordered by a physician and dispensed at a local pharmacy can cause adverse drug reactions. These types of incidents result in up to 2.7 million hospitalizations each year. Holding caregivers liable for poison exposure  Leaving your child or vulnerable adult with a caregiver is not an easy decision. You entrust that person with your loved one’s well-being and expect their safety to be paramount. But what happens when the individual they’re caring for suffers a poisoning injury or death? Caregivers entrusted with supervising a child or vulnerable adult may be held responsible if the person they’re caring for suffers a poisoning injury or death. Proving poisoning liability on the part of a daycare facility, babysitter, nursing home, or another party can be difficult. It requires evidence of the following: Children are not the only potential victims in poisoning cases. Nursing homes, hospitals and other such caregivers often accept a duty of care for adults under their supervision. They are required to ensure that the correct medication is disbursed, in the proper doses and at the appropriate times. Failure to do so could give rise to a liability claim against the employee and the organization.  Poison Prevention Tips Lock up potentially hazardous substances. Keep your prescription medication, harmful chemicals or other substances out of the reach of children. Childproof cabinets and drawers to ensure that children are unable to access poisonous materials. Follow dosage instructions on any medications. Prevent accidental poisonings by carefully reading and following all instructions for your medications. Read all warning labels to avoid potential interactions between medications. Finally, only take medications prescribed by a healthcare professional, and only by the person for whom they were prescribed. Stay calm and react quickly. If you feel that someone in your care may have been poisoned by a harmful substance, stay calm. Call 911 if they have passed out or aren’t breathing. If they are awake and responsive, call the CDC’s Poison control line at 1-800-222-1222. What should poisoning victims and their families do? When a vulnerable adult or a child suffers an injury or dies from poisoning, the parents or family members should seek legal advice from a Tampa personal injury lawyer. A consultation with an attorney with experience handling poisoning liability cases may help to identify the parties whose negligence caused injuries suffered by their loved one.