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The Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Innovation provides clinical consultation and research programs aimed at making the use of medications in children safer and more effective. Within the division, the Section of Medical Toxicology provides consultative services for potential poison exposures, including overdoses, environmental exposures, and envenomations.

Pharmacology and toxicology staff


The division includes physicians, doctoral-trained researchers, fellows, nurses, research coordinators, research assistants, administrative staff, trainees and students.

News & features

We're always developing new things at Children's Mercy. Learn about new research studies, clinical breakthroughs, and other information about GOLDILOKS.

Several faculty members are credentialed in Clinical Pharmacology by the American Board of Clinical Pharmacology; others have completed their pediatric clinical pharmacology fellowship at Children's Mercy in the Division as a joint program with other pediatric subspecialties.

Our work has allowed the division to achieve an international reputation as a leader in pediatric clinical pharmacology and medical toxicology.

GOLDILOKS®


GOLDILOKS® stands for Genomic- and Ontogeny-Linked Dose Individualization and cLinical Optimization for KidS. Children's Mercy has received a five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health that will support continued development of the program, which is designed to ensure that children receive the precise dose of medicine they need, when they need it. The initial focus will be on a medication used to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder for which genetic variation is known to have a substantial effect on how much drug is present in the body after dosing. 

Through collaborations with partners at the University of Manchester, Duke University, and other academic institutions, the GOLDILOKs® Center will add internationally recognized expertise in quantitative systems biology and metabolomics to improve the health and wellbeing of children everywhere. 

The GOLDILOKS® Clinic is designed to serve as a multi-disciplinary resource in therapeutics for patients and providers within the Children’s Mercy system. This clinic will serve patients with complex therapeutic dilemmas who are referred by their primary care physician or sub-specialist. The clinic will implement a team approach in addressing the facets of therapeutic response which are unique to each patient. This will include a weekly comprehensive case discussion of each patient with a team of physicians, researchers, and pharmacists. Recommendations may include follow-up, adjustments to the care plan, and/or additional testing.

PEHSU National Classroom


The Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit is dedicated to increasing knowledge about environmental medicine amongst health care professionals regarding children’s environmental health. Visit this link for a description of the opportunities that PEHSU Offers.

Learn more about the PEHSU National Classroom

Clinical Services

Children’s Mercy offers the largest and most comprehensive pediatric clinical pharmacology program in North America. We are combining innovative research with personalized pediatric care to advance the field of individualized therapeutics—medicine that is tailored to each child’s unique needs.

Pharmacogenetic testing of the TPMT and NUDT15 genes is now available at Children’s Mercy as part of in-house cancer next-generation sequencing (NGS) testing. Patients who have variants in these genes may need lower doses of thiopurine medications or alternative medications to avoid side effects.

Pharmacology

Inpatient consult service

The Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutic Innovation Consult Team provides consultative services for issues concerning therapeutic drug use and the evaluation and treatment of medications in infants, children and adolescents. Experts in clinical pharmacology are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week:

  • Evaluation and management of drug-induced diseases

  • Adverse drug reactions

  • Drug-drug reactions

  • Unanticipated responses to therapy and other complex therapeutic issues

  • Individualization of drug therapy through application of clinical pharmacokinetics

  • Drug therapy selection

Toxicology

Inpatient consult service

The Medical Toxicology Consult Team provides consultative services for a variety of environmental, exposure, overdose and poison issues. A Children's Mercy Medical Toxicologist is on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Our toxicologists also provide medical direction for the Kansas Poison Control Center:

  • Potential poison exposures, including overdoses (intentional and unintentional)

  • Environmental exposure and envenomations, such as snake and spider bites

Contact information


Health care professionals


Admissions, consults, and transports 
1 (800) GO-MERCY (466-3729)
Visit our Provider Portal to request a consultation.

Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutic Innovation Office
(816) 234-3059