Drug and Poison Information Service

The Drug and Poison Information Service (DPIS) is a dedicated Call-centre of the Malaysia National Poison Centre. The Call-centre is a referral service for poisoning emergencies, incidents of overdose, chemical safety and other related issues. Trained pharmacists operate the Call-centre during office hours and provide additional service in the evening, weekends and public holidays. Provision of services outside office hours are however limited to a briefer schedule. Consultation and feedbacks handled by the DPIS are based on standardised references and databases. Conversations between the caller and the DPIS are

recorded for audit purposes and as training materials. Follow-up calls are procedural depending on the nature of the case to ensure continuous support and assistance. Majority of the calls to the DPIS are mainly from hospitals and clinics around the country with a smaller number from households, factories etc. The DPIS also provide and share poisoning data and drug information to its regional counterparts on request.

Non-urgent general drug/poison enquiries can be communicated by email to the centre for feedback at [email protected]

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

When to contact the service?

When faced with:

Acute or chronic poisonings involving:
- Drugs and Medical Products
- Pesticides
- Household and Industrial Chemicals
- Natural Toxins
Misuse and abused medicines
Drug-related problems including Adverse Drug Reactions

What is required when contacting the service?

In cases of exposure to poisons, please be ready with the following information:

Age and weight of the victim/patient.
Callers telephone number (this is important for follow up calls).
Name of the poison/drug involved (read one at a time, the information written on labels, if any).
Quantity of substance involved (provide estimation as accurate as possible).
Time of incident.
Signs and symptoms.
First aid/treatment given (if any).

Other services offered by the DPIS?

Drug and Poison Information attachment programme for healthcare providers and students in related field.
Training packages in management of common acute poisoning for healthcare providers.
Drug/Poison education and prevention package programmes for targeted community members or general public.
Review of poisoning management guidelines or safety/toxicology data sheets.

Available Training Services

Drug and Poison Information attachment programme for Pharmacy students (local/non-local)

Duration: 1-2 weeks in groups of minimum 4 students

Drug and Poison Information attachment programme for Pharmacists (local/non-local)

Duration: 2- 4 weeks

Industrial/Internship training for Pharmacy students (local/non-local)

Duration: 4-6 weeks in groups of minimum 4 students

Clinical Toxicology

Duration: 2 weeks

Occupational / Environmental / Public Health (Toxicology)

Duration: 2 weeks

Training packages in Management of Common Acute Poisoning for Healthcare Providers

Duration: 3-5 days workshop/seminar

Elective attachment for Medical Doctor under Specialist Programme/Master in Emergency Medicine

Duration: 2 weeks

Note: It is possible to design and customize the training to meet individual requirement