POISON SPECIALISTS
All Poison Specialists at the Tennessee Poison Center are registered nurses, pharmacists, or physicians with extensive poison management experience and specialty training. America's Poison Centers (APC), formerly known as AAPCC, credentials a nurse or pharmacist as a Certified Specialist in Poison Information (CSPI) once standard requirements have been met. Certification requires passing a standardized national exam, handling a minimum of 2,000 human exposure cases a year, and working a minimum of 16 hours per week in the poison center. The Tennessee Poison Center has 14 CSPIs on staff.
PHYSICIANS
The Tennessee Poison Center has board-certified physician toxicologists on staff. A medical toxicologist is on call 24/7 providing medical back-up to poison specialists for life threatening poison emergencies and is also available to consult with health care staff as necessary.
Dr. Rebecca Bruccoleri is the Medical Director of the Tennessee Poison Center. She is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. She is responsible for budget and activities of the Tennessee Poison Center, ensures that grant deliverables are met, ensures that all accreditation criteria are met for the AAPCC accreditation process, and establishes and approves clinical guidelines for the Tennessee Poison Center with input from specialists and attending toxicologists.
Dr. Marissa Kopatic is the Managing Director of the Tennessee Poison Center. She is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine in the departments of Internal Medicine and Emergency Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Kopatic is also a Faculty Attending Physician with the Department of Veteran Affairs. Her role includes ensuring the poison center provides the highest quality of poison advice to residents and healthcare providers in Tennessee by maintaining the center's AAPCC accreditation and giving direct supervision to the poison center staff, strategic planning, and oversight of administrative functions of programs.
ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF
Sophie Raffo is the Coordinator of Community Outreach and has a bachelor's degree from Middle Tennessee State University in Biochemistry. She is the liaison between the community and the TPC and is responsible for all outreach and education activity at the Poison Center and statewide. Her role includes grant writing, educating the public on poison safety, promoting use of the toll-free Poison Help hotline, collaborating with injury prevention educators statewide, and more.
Thayer Hamm is the Office Manager and has a bachelor's degree from Austin Peay State University in Business Administration. He is responsible for financial management, payroll, and financial reporting.