CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It's known in the Poison Control world as "routine disruption" and it happens every summer.
When children have more time at home, there is more opportunity for trouble, according to North Carolina Poison Control.
"This is the time before they're home unsupervised to clean out that medicine cabinet. Get rid of anything that is old, or not being used," said Dr. Michael Beuhler, medical director. "There are certain drugs like methadone and oxytocin that can kill a kid with one pill."
Every call that comes into the Poison Control is a call no parent wants to make. Dr. Beuhler said routine disruption takes many forms.
"They're no longer going to school at a certain time so both parents try to give medication where it should have been just one. You've got people traveling, when relatives come and visit if they don't safeguard their medications, that can be a significant problem. The older you are, the medications you're on tend to be a lot more dangerous."
In addition to medications, parents will sometimes put harmful liquids into "party cups" for easier pouring. That is the sort of danger that comes into the poison center every summer.
On the website, visitors can see a list of harmful products next to products that children enjoy, for example, apple juice next to Pine-Sol.
"There's not this communication that, hey, you should never do that."
Poison control tells parents if their child is not breathing, call 911. Otherwise, call 1-800-222-1222. A skilled operator will be able to guide a parent through the next steps to take.
"And what do you need to do, do you need to go into the hospital, or are we going to be able to watch you at home?" said Dr. Beuhler.
The center receives 70,000 calls a year with everything from snake bites to overdoses on exotic drugs like synthetic marijuana.