The Four Routes of Poison Exposure
There are four different routes through which poisoning can occur:
If a poisoning does occur, it’s important to react calmly and quickly to take the appropriate first aid steps.
Important First Aid Steps for Poisoning
1. Call 911 if the person is unconscious.
If the victim is unconscious, having a seizure, or struggling to breathe, call 911 immediately.
2. Call the Missouri Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222.
For all other poison-related emergencies, contact the Missouri Poison Center for more information and further instructions.
3. Be prepared with key details.
When calling for help, provide the following information:
- The person’s name, age, and weight
- Their current condition and any existing health conditions or problems
4. Identify the substance involved.
Be ready to explain:
- What substance was involved and how it came into contact
- Any first aid that has already been given
- Whether the victim has vomited
5. Know your location.
If medical attention is needed, be prepared to give your location and how long it will take you to get to a hospital.
Transcript with visual descriptions
Visual: An animated living room with a TV, a couch, two armchairs, and a bookshelf. A mother with her child sit at the couch. A man on the TV screen speaks.
Person 1: Did you know your house is full of potential poisons?
Visual: Zoom in to the mother and child on the couch.
Person 2: What? Don’t listen to the TV, honey. That’s not true.
Visual: The woman stands up and coughs
Sound: Coughing.
Person 3: Mom, your breath stinks.
Person 2: Sorry. I’ll take a mint.
Person 1: Hey, Sandra.
Visual: Two pills, one pink and oval, one yellow and round, appear on the TV screen.
Person 1: Which one’s the mint?
Person 2: Did the TV just say my name?
Person 3: The one on the left.
Sound: Buzzer sound effect.
Visual: The man on the TV shakes his head. The pink pill disappears.
Person 1: Wrong. That’s prescription medication. You just got poisoned.
Visual: A puff of smoke appears over the TV as the TV starts floating.
Person 3: Mom?
Person 1: Call me Devon. Most people try to keep household cleaners, prescriptions, and other potential poisons in specific locations and out of the reach of children. But if someone does get into something they shouldn’t, don’t panic. Knowing what to do when someone’s been poisoned can help you react quickly and calmly to administer appropriate first aid. And can even save their life.
Person 3: How do we do that?
Person 1: Great question. That depends on what kind of poisoning has occurred. Poison can get into your body four different ways.
Visual: A red banner with white text “Four routes of poison” appears on the TV screen.
Visual: An animated man in a bathroom leans over a bucket with green fumes and a skull and crossbones symbol.
Sound: Coughing.
Person 1: You can breathe it in.
Visual: An animated man in a kitchen has spilled red liquid on the counter and is leaning over it.
Person 1: Get it on your skin.
Visual: An animated man in a lab is getting sprayed in the face with a purple liquid.
Person 1: Get it in your eyes.
Sound: Screams
Visual: Back in living room.
Person 1: Or you can swallow it. Like with that prescription pill that looked like a mint.
Person 3: What if my mom had swallowed the pill instead of a mint?
Sound: Buzzer sound effect.
Visual: A dark blue screen with white text “IF SOMEONE SWALLOWS A POISON, STAY CALM.” appears next to cleaning product bottles.
AVO: If a child or an adult swallows something they shouldn’t have, don’t panic.
Visual: The text changes to “DO NOT INDUCE VOMITING. DO NOT GIVE THEM ANYTHING TO DRINK.” next to falling pills and capsules.
AVO: Do not induce vomiting and don’t give them anything to drink.
Visual: The text changes to “WIPE MOUTH OUT WITH A DAMP CLOTH OR RINSE MOUTH WITH WATER” next to a hand filling a glass with water.
AVO: Wipe their mouth out with a damp cloth or rinse with water.
Visual: The text changes to “CALL THE MISSOURI POISON CENTER RIGHT AWAY 1-800-222-1222” next to a hand dialing a phone.
AVO: and call the Missouri Poison Center right away.
Visual: The text changes to “HAVE THE PRODUCT WITH YOU IF POSSIBLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS” next to cleaning products in a basket.
AVO: Make sure that you have the product in front of you so that you can answer questions about what they’ve swallowed.
Visual: A live-action man in a kitchen is talking on a phone, shrugging with an open palm.
AVO: and tell them exactly what happened.
Visual: The Missouri Poison Center logo and number as well as the text “Free. Fast. Confidential. Open 24/7.” appears over a blurred image of the man talking on the phone.
AVO: The Poison Center experts will tell you what you need to do next.
Visual: Animated dining table with the mom and child eating, the TV with the man is in the wall.
Person 3: So, if someone is poisoned, do we call the Poison Center or 911?
Person 1: If someone is unconscious, stops breathing, or has a seizure, call 911. But in any other situation involving a poison, you should call the Missouri Poison Center first.
Person 2: I’ve heard that doctors and nurses call the Poison Center, too.
Person 1: You’re right. When doctors and nurses need help treating poisonings, they call the Poison Center. They’re the experts on poison. Can you pass the rolls, Chad?
Visual: The floating TV stumbles a bottle of bleach over and it spills blue liquid on the table.
Person 1: Never mind.
Sound: Liquid pouring, clatter.
Person 3: Is that bleach? Why is there bleach on the table?
Person 1: Poison can be anywhere, Chad. What’s important is knowing what to do when you’ve been exposed to it.
Visual: A dark blue screen with white text “HAS YOUR SKIN COME INTO CONTACT WITH A CHEMICAL OR POISON?” appears next to a kitchen sink. A man approaches the sink.
AVO: If your skin has come into contact with a poison,
Visual: The text changes to “FLOOD THE SKIN WITH WATER FOR 5 – 10 MINUTES” as the man rinses his arm under the faucet.
AVO: remove the contaminated clothing as safely as possible and flood the skin with water for 5 to 10 minutes.
Visual: The text changes to “CALL THE MISSOURI POISON CENTER RIGHT AWAY 1-800-222-1222” as the man takes out his phone and starts dialing while still rinsing.
AVO: While the skin is being rinsed, call the Missouri Poison Center and describe what happened.
Visual: The text changes to “HAVE THE PRODUCT WITH YOU IF POSSIBLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS” next to cleaning products in a basket.
AVO: If possible, have the product in front of you so you can answer any questions.
Visual: The man gently washes his arm with soap and water under the faucet.
AVO: You may need to wash the skin gently with soap and water once it’s been rinsed.
Visual: The Missouri Poison Center logo along with the phrase “Free. Fast. Confidential. Open 24/7.” appears over a blurred image of the man washing his arm.
AVO: The Poison Center experts will tell you what to do.
Visual: An animated man, Person 4, stands in a bathroom looking annoyed. The TV screen with Person 1 appears beside him, along with Person 2 and Person 3.
Sound: Scream.
Person 1: Don’t mind us.
Person 2: Why are we here?
Person 1: Your husband is grooming.
Person 4: That’s an odd way to put it.
Visual: A hand sprays hairspray in front of Person 4’s face.
Sound: Spraying sound effect.
Person 3: What happens if he gets something in his eyes?
Visual: Person 4 is sprayed in the face and winces.
Sound: Spraying sound effect and screams.
Person 4: Ah! My eyes!
Visual: A dark blue screen with white text “IF CHEMICALS OR POISON GETS INTO THE EYES, RINSE THE EYES” appears next to a faucet. A man fills a cup with water.
AVO: If someone gets a potential poison in their eyes,
Visual: The text changes to “HOLD THE CUP 2-3 INCHES AWAY FROM THE EYE AND POUR” as the man holds a cup of water up to his eye, trying to rinse it.
AVO: rinse the eye with lukewarm, not hot or cold, water poured from a plastic cup. Hold the cup two to three inches away from the eye and pour. Do this for five minutes and have them blink as much as possible.
Visual: A white screen with black text “DO NOT FORCE THEIR EYELIDS OPEN.”
AVO: Do not force their eyelids open.
Visual: A dark blue screen with white text “CALL THE MISSOURI POISON CENTER RIGHT AWAY 1-800-222-1222” next to a hand dialing a phone, then the phrase changes to “HAVE THE PRODUCT WITH YOU IF POSSIBLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS” next to cleaning products. The man is then shown on the phone.
AVO: Call the Missouri Poison Center immediately and have the product they got into their eyes with you to answer any questions they may have.
Visual: The Missouri Poison Center logo along with the phrase “Free. Fast. Confidential. Open 24/7.” appears over a blurred image of the man talking on the phone.
AVO: The Poison Center experts will tell you what to do next.
Visual: Animated mom and child stand in a kitchen with the talking TV.
Person 3: Wasn’t there one more way you could get poisoned?
Person 2: Inhalation?
Person 1: Boy, you know, the floor in here sure is dirty. We should clean it.
Sound: Liquid pouring.
Visual: Two bottles of cleaning product spill liquid into a bucket, causing fumes to rise. The fumes envelop the woman and boy, who are coughing.
Sound: Coughing.
Person 1: Inhalation.
Visual: A dark blue screen with white text “IF YOU’VE INHALED POISONOUS FUMES, IMMEDIATELY GET TO FRESH AIR.” appears next to a sliding glass door. A man is covering his nose and mouth with his arm.
AVO: If someone has inhaled poisonous fumes, immediately get the person to fresh air. Avoid breathing the fumes yourself.
Visual: A white screen with text “IF THE VICTIM ISN’T BREATHING, CALL 9-1-1” appears.
AVO: If the victim isn’t breathing, call 911.
Visual: A man opens a door wide. The text “OPEN ALL WINDOWS AND DOORS AS WIDE AS YOU CAN” appears.
AVO: If they are breathing, open all the windows and doors as wide as you can.
Visual: The text changes to “CALL THE MISSOURI POISON CENTER RIGHT AWAY 1-800-222-1222” next to a hand dialing a phone. The man is then shown talking on the phone.
AVO: and call the Missouri Poison Center right away.
Visual: The Missouri Poison Center logo along with the phrase “Free. Fast. Confidential. Open 24/7.” appears over a blurred image of the man talking on the phone.
AVO: The Poison Center experts will tell you what to do next.
Visual: Back in animated living room with mom, child, talking TV and now dad walking as well.
Person 1: So, you see, there are a lot of potential poisons in every home, but there’s no reason to be afraid. If you know what to do in the event of a poisoning, you can react quickly and calmly. Whether a poison has been ingested, inhaled, or has gotten onto your skin or into your eyes, the Missouri Poison Center is open 24 hours a day and is always ready to help.
Person 3: Thank you, Devin.
Person 1: My pleasure. In fact, you might want to step out onto your porch and call the Missouri Poison Center right now.
Person 2: Why?
Person 1: You just spent the last four minutes talking to a television. There might be something in the air.
Visual: The screen fades to white. Text appears sequentially: “Free.”, “Fast.”, “Confidential.”, “24/7.”, then the website “www.MissouriPoisonCenter.org” and then the Missouri Poison Center logo with 1-800-222-1222.
Sound: Upbeat music.
