http://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photo-entrance-to-emergency-room-image26055195The public health organization STOP Foodborne Illness has launched a crowdfunding campaign to educate emergency room doctors about foodborne illness. The organization is trying to raise $15,000 on everydayhero.com to pay for creation of an education packet to send to every pediatric ER and hospital in the U.S. so that patients receive proper treatment. Distinguishing the symptoms of foodborne illnesses from the flu is rarely emphasized in medical training, the organization says. “We have heard from many parents who bring children into the ER that their children are sent home, even when they have bloody stools,” STOP Foodborne Illness CEO Deirdre Schlunegger told Food Safety News. “Children are not routinely tested for foodborne illness and the results can be devastating.” Children younger than 6 are most vulnerable to foodborne illness, along with the elderly and people with compromised immune systems. Each year, 1 in 6 Americans gets sick by consuming contaminated foods or beverages. (To sign up for a free subscription to Food Safety News, click here.)