Poison Control Center follow-up of occupational disease.
We followed up 73 of 372 calls to a Regional Poison Control Center (RPCC) that involved workplace disease/exposure(s); most other calls were not made by the workers. An average of 12 additional people per workplace were potentially exposed. Six of the 73 contacted a government agency for investigation of the hazard/illness. Twenty-five percent of callers were still exposed an average of seven months after the original call. The results indicate that poison control centers should develop a public health component to calls about possible workplace poisonings.
Bresnitz
E A
EA
Department of Community & Preventive Medicine, Medical College of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia 19129.
D000328:Adult; D003691:Delaware; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011039:Poison Control Centers; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D013689:Telephone