Recommendations:
(1) Keep potential poisons out of reach and out of sight.
(2) Make sure all child-resistant closures are engaged.
(3) Never refer to medicines as candy.
(4) Safely dispose of all medications that are unused and no longer needed or that are outdated.
(5) Never transfer a substance from an original to an alternative container.
where:
• Potential poisons should be placed in child-proof cabinets or drawers.
• Use of child-resistant closures may be a problem for the elderly who may have difficulty opening the containers once closed.
• Pills and tablets set out for a day's consumption should be placed where they cannot be accessed by a child.
• Many children's vitamins are made to look like candy, which would seem to encourage a child to think that pills and tablets might be good tasting.
• The prohibition about transferring a substance to a different container would have exceptions. A chemically-resistant container properly labelled with the contents and MSDS information seems perfectly reasonable to me. On the other hand, transferring a chemical into an inappropriate container that is mislabelled as to its contents is just asking for trouble. Many homes have bottles containing chemical solutions whose nature and origin are a mystery.
• All MSDS information is provided with a chemical should be kept where it can be readily accessed.
The phone number of the nearest poison control center should be posted near the telephone. The universal number in the United States is 800-222-1222.
