PESTICIDE EXPOSURE...and the health care professional's access to Pesticide Application Record information Glenda L. Mah Do you know that there are two federal pesticide regulations which are important for licensed health care professionals? When a patient manifests symptoms that may be related to pesticide exposure, the symptoms must be clinically evaluated. Two federal laws provide the licensed health care professional with certain rights to information in pesticide application records that may assist in the differential diagnosis and treatment of the patient: Pesticide Recordkeeping Regulations What Are Restricted Use Pesticides? Pesticides are chemicals used to destroy pests, control their activity, or prevent pests from causing damage. Pesticides include insecticides, fungicides, bactericides, herbicides, etc. Each pesticide is designated as "general use" or "restricted use" by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). When a pesticide is registered, some or all uses may be classified by EPA as "restricted use" if the pesticide requires special handling because of its toxicity to humans and/or the environment. Restricted use pesticides may be applied only by trained, certified applicators or those under their direct supervision. Who is a Certified Applicator? There are two types of certified applicators, private and commercial. Private applicators are licensed to use or supervise the application of restricted use pesticides on their own land or land under their control in the production of an agricultural commodity. Farmers who apply pesticides on their own land are private applicators. Applicators who are hired to apply restricted use pesticides on another person's property are called commercial applicators. Certified pesticide applicators have been specially trained and certified by the state to use restricted use pesticides safely. Accessing Information in the Pesticide Application Records Two federal regulations provide access to the application record information when treating an individual who may have been exposed to a pesticide: EPA's Worker Protection Standard and USDA's Pesticide Recordkeeping Regulations. EPA's Worker Protection Standard (WPS) provides access to information on both general and restricted use pesticides. WPS states that if there is reason to believe that a person has been poisoned or injured by exposure to pesticides the agricultural employer shall provide any obtainable information on: (1) Product name, EPA registration number, and active ingredients of any product to which that person might have been exposed; (2) Antidote, first aid, and other medical information from the product labeling; and (3) The circumstances of exposure of that person to the pesticide. USDA's Pesticide Recordkeeping regulations only apply to restricted use pesticides. The certified applicator is required to release record information upon request by a licensed health care professional, or an individual acting under the direction of the professional, when the professional determines that the information is necessary to provide treatment for a suspected exposure. In a medical emergency, the record information must be provided immediately. Only information that relates to a specific exposure may be requested. The USDA Pesticide Recordkeeping regulations require strict confidentiality of record information. The licensed health care professional (or designee) may only release pesticide record information: 1) as necessary for the treatment of a patient exposed to the restricted use pesticide, 2) Federal and State agencies which deal with pesticide usage or safety, or 3) when submitting an official pesticide poisoning incident report to a Federal or State Agency. What Information do you Need from the Applicator When Treating for Pesticide Exposure? Label Information: Under the "Warning" or "Caution" Statements of the pesticide labels, there will be a "Statement of Practical Treatment" or "Note to Physicians" that provide first aid instructions and treatment recommendations. The label may also list the telephone number of the manufacturer's toxicologist and/or medical specialist who are available for consultation. Each pesticide has a specific label. The label lists identifying information including product registration number, active ingredients, directions for use, and hazard or precautionary statements. EPA Registration Number: If available, this information can be cross-referenced with a database to access label and/or toxicologic information on the pesticide. The National Pesticide Telecommunications Network (Priority Line: 800-858-7377) is able to access this database to help determine the treatment. If the EPA registration number is not available, the product name also provides a resource to obtain treatment information.
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