In 1997, a new system for providing uniform poison services for the entire state was developed. The University of California San Francisco, School of Pharmacy - Department of Clinical Pharmacyprovides administrative services for the California Poison Control System (CPCS). The CPCS combined the services of four existing poison centers:

• the Sacramento Division located at 
  the University of California, Davis, Medical Center
• the San Francisco Division located at
  San Francisco General Hospital
• the Fresno/Madera Division located at
  Children’s Hospital Central California
• the San Diego Division located at
  the University of California, San Diego, Medical Center

Trained health care professionals, who have many years of valuable experience handling poison cases, staff all answering sites. The sites use identical telephones, computers, computer programs and databases, recording systems and automatic call distribution systems. They use uniform protocols and guidelines and have identical health education materials. The result is uniform quality poison information for the entire state.