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The Florida Poison Information Center Network (FPICN) is dedicated to providing emergency services 24 hours a day to the citizens of Florida by offering poison prevention and management information through a nationwide, toll-free hotline (1-800-222-1222) accessible by voice and TTY. The emergency services are provided by three linked centers located in Jacksonville, Miami and Tampa.

Geographic Districts for Each Center In The Florida Poison Information Center Network

County map of Florida

The caller to the Network is automatically transferred to the Poison Center handling their geographic area . Each center in the FPICN is certified by the American Association of Poison Control Centers as a Regional Poison Control Center and is located on the campus of a major teaching hospital. The Florida Poison Information Center Network Data Center is a standalone unit that provides technical support and data management/analysis services for the three Centers. The Network is coordinated through Children’s Medical Services, a division of the Department of Health in the state of Florida. Emergency and information calls placed to the Network are assessed, triaged, managed and followed by specially trained nurses, pharmacists, physician assistants, physicians and on-call board certified toxicologists.

Mission Statement

Poison Center Contacts

To provide exceptional patient care services while minimizing overall health care costs relating to poison exposures through epidemiologic surveillance, preventive educational programs, and consultative services to the community and health care professional.

Florida Poison Information Center - Jacksonville
Director	Jay Schauben, PharmD, DABAT, FAACT
Medical Director	Thomas Kunisaki, MD, FACEP, FACMT
Educator	Deborah Smith, RN, BSN, MS, CHCRM, CSPI
Admin Phone	904-244-4465
Fax	904-244-4063
Address	Shands Jacksonville Medical Center 655 West 8th Street Jacksonville, FL 32209

Florida Poison Information Center - Miami
Director	Richard Weisman, PharmD, DABAT
Medical Director	Jeffrey Bernstein, MD, FACEP, FACMT
Educator	Lenys Klumpp, BA
Admin Phone	305-585-5250
Fax	305-545-9762
Address	Jackson Memorial Medical Center P.O. Box 016960 (R-131) Miami, FL 33101

Florida Poison Information Center - Tampa
Director	Vincent Speranza, PharmD, DABAT
Medical Director	Gregory Gaar, MD, FAAP, FACEP, FAACT James Hillman, MD, FAAP, FACEP
Educator	JoAnn Chambers-Emerson, RN, BSN, CSPI
Admin Phone	813-844-7044
Fax	813-844-4443
Address	Tampa General Hospital P.O. Box 1289 Tampa, FL 33601

Statistics

The Florida Poison Information Center Network (FPICN) was created in 1989 by an act of the Florida Legislature (FS 395.038) and has rapidly grown into a cost-effective model of poison center systems. In 2001, the Network responded to over 173,000 calls placed to its three Centers; 117,000 of these were known or suspected exposures to toxic substances. Approximately 82% of the patients calling from home were managed in the home, without the need for an emergency department visit. In managing these cases, the Network placed 101, 000 follow-up calls to continually assess this home management. FPICN Toxicologists provided 3,481 consultations with Florida’s physicians to assist in the care of hospitalized patients. In an attempt to prevent poisonings, the Network educators coordinated 1,528 programs for the lay public and health professional, distributed over 363,000 informational brochures, handouts and telephone stickers, and touched almost 120,000 participants.

Cost Effectiveness

Poison Centers save $7.00 in health care expenditures for every $1.00 invested and rank second only to childhood immunization programs in their ability to save health care dollars. (Department of Health and Human Service study)

Safety intervention program cost savings per dollar spent:

Childhood Immunizations

Poison Information Centers

Bicycle Helmet Program

Child Safety Seat Program

Smoke Detector Program

Regional Trauma Program

$7.40

$7.00

$2.00

$1.50

$1.15