French Toxicovigilance Organization

Abstract

ISEE-270 Objective: French poison control centers answer to inquiries from health professionals and also citizens. Human exposure cases are collected in each center's database. In 2004, the French Ministry of Health has transferred the field of toxic vigilance to the French Institute for Public Health Surveillance (InVS). Material and Methods: A national coordination committee for toxic vigilance (NCCT) was created including in its executive board experts from other French Public Agencies involved in many fields (AFSSET: environmental and occupational health safety, AFSSA: food safety, AFSSAPS: drug and human products). The president and vice-president of the committee are heads of 2 poison control centers. The NCCT includes all members cited above, directors of the 11 other French poison control centers and delegates from the Ministry of Health. The main missions of the NCCT are to participate in poisoning alerts (generated by the poison centers or other survey systems); to respond to specific requests from the Ministry of Health or other Public Health authorities (also to relay European working group requests to all member states); to implement postmarketing surveillance of new drugs; and to participate in all working groups created by national public health bodies needing a clinical toxicologist. Four thematic working groups were created within the NCCT to answer specifically to these missions: drugs, domestic poisonings, insecticides, and toxic deaths. Results: A national information system will be operational by mid-2007 allowing data use to detect incidents. Analysis of national mortality and hospital admissions associated with poisoning will be performed annually by the NCCT.