Evaluation of poison information services of a Clinical Pharmacy Department in a South Indian Tertiary Care Hospital

Introduction: Good quality poison information services reduce mortality, prevent prolonged hospitalization and are cost effective. Continuous evaluation of the information services is essential to upgrade the quality of the poison information services provided. Methodology: A retrospective study was conducted to evaluate the quality of all the poison information documented over a period of four years. The quality was measured, based on DSE/WHO seminar guidelines. The quality of service provision after evaluation was scored and rated from poor to excellent, based on the scales, with a 100 point rating. The outcome of the service was evaluated by comparing the mortality rate for the cases in which the poison information service was provided, with the cases in which the Poison Information Center was not consulted. Results: A total of 210 poison information queries were answered during the study period. More than 80% of queries were rated as excellent, as per DSE/WHO seminar guidelines. The mortality rate was reduced in cases where the Poison Information Center was consulted (0.9%) and it was lower compared to that of the cases where the Center was not consulted (12%). Conclusion: The evaluation of the services of the Poison Information Center showed that the services provided during the study period were rated as 'excellent' and they reduced the mortality rate.