Israel Poison Information Center

The Israel Poison Information Center at Rambam Health Care Campus is a branch of the Ministry of Health. It is the National Poison Center of Israel and the only service of its kind in the country that provides expert advice on poisonings to the healthcare system and the general public. A telephone hotline is available 24/7 for inquiries related to poisonings (clinical toxicology), drug information (clinical pharmacology), and the effects of drugs, chemicals, and other poisons during pregnancy and lactation (reproductive toxicology). The annual number of calls is more than 31,000; 43% pertains to children under the age of six years. About 49% of the calls are related to pharmaceuticals, 36% to chemicals and 5% to poisonous plants and venomous animals. The center also operates at a national level in the area of poisoning prevention and preparation in the event of mass poisoning, as well as consulting to government agencies such as the Ministry of Health and the Medical Corps.

The Israel Poison Information Center is also academically oriented, providing lectures to medical students, residents, nurses, and pharmacists. In addition, the poison center is involved in research of poisonings and has an ongoing collaboration with health care facilities, universities and international professional organizations.