A facility meeting the staffing and equipment standards of the American Association of Poison Control Centers and recognized to be able to give information on, or treatment to patients suffering from, poisoning. A poison information center consists of specially trained staff and a reference library but does not have treatment facilities. More than 400 poison centers are scattered throughout the U.S. They offer 24-hr service. They are commonly associated with or are part of large hospitals or medical schools. A government agency — the Bureau of Drugs Division of the Poison Control Branch of the Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services — is also active in poison control programs and in coordinating the efforts of individual centers. For the address and telephone number of state or province poison control centers.