Poison centres are established in many countries as sources of specialized expertise to address the fact that health professionals could not be expected to know about the toxicity of every chemical substance and product and also to provide a focus for toxicological research. Poisons Centres have an important role in implementation of the International Health Regulations (2005) which require that countries have the capacity for surveillance, detection and response to public health events caused by chemicals. Much of this capacity can be provided by a well-resourced poisons centre.
The Guidelines for establishing a poison centre provides information on the services that may be offered by a poison centre as well as detailed practical guidance on planning and operations.
This publication is an update of the Guidelines for Poisons Control, published by WHO in 1997. The update addresses the renewed emphasis on poisons centres given the implementation of the IHR (2005) as well as developments in technology and experience in poisons centre operations since 1997.
