In case of any questions or concerns about a child’s health, it is essential to consult with a doctor or healthcare provider. If an urgent concern or emergency occurs, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department immediately. Parents often opt for a “better safe than sorry” course of action, but it is crucial to decide whether to go to an urgent care center or the pediatrician’s office.
Urgent care centers are ideal for non-life-threatening problems that should not wait until the following day. They work like an extension of your pediatrician’s office, providing after-hours treatment for most common childhood ailments. When to go to urgent care or call your doctor, consider factors such as fever lasting more than three days, fever over 102 for more than two days in an infant, serious conditions like broken bones, seizures, unconsciousness, and breathing issues, and if your child is able to walk, talk, interact, and play.
If your child needs medical care outside of regular business hours, an urgent care facility may be an option. If your child has a cough and difficulty breathing or breathing is labored, they are likely candidates for a trip to the emergency room. The best place for children to receive medical care remains with their pediatrician, who should be a trusted partner in their care.
In general, urgent care is for minor, non-life-threatening situations, while the ER is for crisis situations. It is important to select a location that focuses on pediatric care and knows what’s best for your child.
📹 When should you take your child to the emergency room, urgent care, or the pediatrician’s office?
Pediatric hospital beds have been filling up throughout Michigan due to respiratory viruses. To help relieve stress on the hospital …
How do I know if my child has a serious illness?
If your child stops breathing, wakes up, has a spotty, purple, or red rash that doesn’t fade, is under 8 weeks old, has a febrile seizure for the first time, has a severe allergic reaction, or has been seriously injured, call 999 for an ambulance. Trust your instincts and know what’s different or worrying behavior in your child. Learn more about serious illnesses that can affect babies and toddlers, including signs of sepsis, anaphylaxis, and injuries. Trust your instincts and call an ambulance if you notice any unusual or worrying behavior in your child.
What are the situations that require urgent medical attention?
This text describes the symptoms of a severe bleeding condition, including persistent bleeding, breathing problems, changes in mental status, chest pain, choking, coughing up blood, weak coughing, fainting, feeling of committing suicide or murder, head or spine injury, severe vomiting, sudden injury, severe pain, dizziness, weakness, and vision changes, swallowing a poisonous substance, severe abdominal pain, unusual headaches, inability to speak, swelling of the face, eyes, or tongue, bluish skin color (cyanosis), and significant changes in mental status.
To prepare for an emergency, determine the location and quickest route to the nearest emergency department, keep emergency phone numbers posted in your home, and have everyone in your household, including children, know when and how to call these numbers. Know which hospital your provider practices and, if practical, go there in an emergency. Wear a medical identification tag if you have a chronic condition or look for one on a person with any of the symptoms mentioned. Get a personal emergency response system if you are an older adult, especially if you live alone.
What is considered an urgent medical condition?
Urgent medical conditions, such as fever, dehydration, eye redness, strains, urinary tract infections, falls, moderate back issues, breathing difficulties, severe cough, sore throat, minor fractures, skin infections, and cuts with minimal bleeding, require immediate medical attention within 24 hours. Hospital emergency rooms provide 24/7 care, treating injuries with utmost care, including life-threatening issues like strokes and traumatic injuries after an accident. These departments are well-equipped and staffed to manage critical and complex medical needs.
When should I be concerned about my child being sick?
If you are concerned about a baby under 12 months, a child stopping breastfeeding, a child under 5 years showing signs of dehydration, a child over 5 years still experiencing dehydration after using oral rehydration sachets, a child experiencing bloody diarrhea or bleeding from the bottom, a child experiencing diarrhea for more than 7 days or vomiting for more than 2 days, or if you have any of these symptoms, call 111 for help. They can arrange a phone call from a nurse or doctor if needed.
Other symptoms include bloody vomit, green or yellow-green vomit, possibly swallowing poison, stiff neck, pain when looking at bright lights, sudden headaches, tummy aches, blotchy skin, difficulty breathing, confusion, or not responding as usual.
Is it normal for a child to sleep a lot when sick?
A child with a severe illness may exhibit several symptoms, including lethargy, confusion, severe pain, and difficulty sleeping. Lethargy is characterized by a child staring into space, refusing to smile, or hardly responding to their caregivers. Confusion is a sudden onset of strange behavior, often accompanied by high fevers. Severe pain is characterized by a child refusing to engage in normal activities, such as playing or watching TV shows, and may cry when attempting to hold or move them. Severe pain can also prevent a child from sleeping or falling asleep briefly. It is important to note that sleep during illness is normal, and alertness is crucial for a child’s well-being.
When should you seek urgent medical attention?
To seek help for problems such as trouble breathing, passing out, arm or jaw pain, unusual headaches, sudden weakness, dizziness, inhaled smoke, confusion, heavy bleeding, broken bones, deep wounds, serious burns, coughing or throwing up blood, severe pain anywhere on the body, severe allergic reactions, high fever, throwing up or loose stools, poisoning or overdose of drug or alcohol, and seizures, go to an emergency department or call 911 or the local emergency number.
The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline provides free and confidential support 24/7, and it is essential not to delay in seeking help. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available at 988lifeline. org or 1-800-273-8255 (1-800-273-TALK).
When to go to the doctor for a child?
A fever lasting over three days or worsening symptoms should be checked by a pediatrician, as they may have an ear infection or other bacterial illness. If the child struggles to breathe, flares their nostrils, sucks their ribs with each breath, makes strange noises or wheezes, or has a bluish color around their lips or nails, they should call the doctor immediately. Rashes, which can come in various forms, are one of the most difficult symptoms to diagnose.
How long should a child be sick before seeing a doctor?
Cold symptoms typically last for three to five days, with symptoms ranging from a runny nose to a slight cough. If symptoms persist after seven days, it’s recommended to see a pediatrician. It’s common for children to get sick eight to 12 times a year, but if symptoms don’t improve within seven days, it’s time to seek medical attention. If a child experiences difficulty breathing, it could be a sign of asthma or a severe case of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). If a child experiences difficulty breathing, it’s essential to contact their pediatrician. It’s important to note that children typically get sick eight to 12 times a year.
What are the four general danger signs for a sick child?
It is recommended that all children exhibiting symptoms of illness be evaluated for general danger signs, including an inability to drink or breastfeed, vomiting, convulsions, and lethargy or unconsciousness. The presence of these signs is indicative of a significant underlying issue and necessitates prompt attention.
What are the four main symptoms for which every sick child should be checked?
In the event that a child displays one or more of the four principal symptoms indicative of a significant illness, it is imperative to inquire further in order to ascertain the nature of the condition and the extent of the symptoms.
📹 Emergency Room 911 or Urgent Care or Doctor Visit | Medical Advice With Doctor ER
Real doctor, Jordan Wagners discusses when you should go to an ER and when to go to urgent care. Doctor ER Dr. Jordan …
one time, my roommate accidently slammed a heavy metal chair straight on my barefoot, and to say it hurt like heck would be an understatement. I still opted NOT to go to the ER, because I wouldn’t have a way to get back home it being 10pm at NIGHT!! Instead we did first aid and the swelling went down. I went to the UC the next morning to get it checked out.
Something that I’m not completely sure of but likely I’ll never have that issue most likely but even if I do it will likely be as I get older, which is what is the smart and logical thing to do if I’m showing signs that my shunt is malfunctioning cuz I found out that all forms of hydrocephalus is life threatening if they don’t get a shunt or if they don’t get their shunt fixed after it malfunctions and it can also give them brain damage but I also want to still be logical and not get in the way of people that are dying or in worse situations then I would be, one smart idea that I can think of is first getting pain meds which is what my mom did in 2019 when I had a migraine and was throwing up all night and my mom said if I didn’t get better after the meds then she would’ve sent me to the ER or urgent care,I don’t remember which one but I think she said ER, likely it stopped and everything was good so that meant that it wasn’t caused by the shunt and that it happened because of no reason which in a way is still a reason some what, I later found out that she was worried because one of the signs that someone’s shunt is malfunctioning is headaches,throwing up, and wanting to lay down a lot, but likely she didn’t have to take me to the ER cuz the pain meds worked, but the main reason why I’m unsure is because I don’t want to waste the doctors time if I go to the ER and nothing is wrong and then years later I actually have a malfunction and die or get brain damage kinda like “the boy who cried wolf” so I’m unsure cuz I don’t wanna waste their time and be in the way of patients that actually have an emergency even though every source I see says to go to the emergency room if you are having signs of your shunt not working as it should because it’s life threatening but also I’ll look real dramatic if there’s nothing wrong and you should always go based on logic and not based on emotions cuz logic is always right
I think urgent care in the Netherlands is different then in the United States, because i had to go to the urgent care once for my wrist once, because i fell on it that day in the morning already but since i have a pretty high pain tolerance i kept on using my hand and wrist the whole day until 11PM.
i cant afford insurance or go to a doctor, so my only real option is the ER and that is only if its clearly something life threatening. other than that, im on my own. i am about to get a super sweet job with awesome benefits though, so hopefully ill be able to get a primary care doctor and see if i can get some of my non-life threatening medical stuff taken care of…..
you should do a article on venoms vs poisons and myths involving them! Generally “if you have to ask, you already know” is my point of view. Likewise, if you can walk, go to urgent care, is another way I look at it. There’s one ER for the entire county I don’t want to distract them from someone who may be likely to die. They’re legit life flighting people to and from the park a few blocks over. On the other hand the hospital is legit like two blocks away from me. I walk five minutes on a good day and I can be at the ER. So to me if I walk and talk, its off to urgent care for me. Also tidbit of forager’s safety, if you think you’ve eaten a poisonous mushroom, write down what you think you ate after you call 911. I’ve heard of people becoming too disoriented to talk after a mushroom poisoning. Worse, the most dangerous fungal poisons can take up to two weeks to manifest at which point they’ve already torpedoed your liver. Foraging lore says highly concentrated milk thistle extract will protect the liver. But I’m not a doctor and I don’t know what the research is on that, so don’t rely on whatever herbal lore you’ve learned, tell the doctor what you’ve heard and let them decide. Remember the saying “there are old mushroom hunters and there are bold mushroom hunters but there are no old bold mushroom hunters.” Whenever you’re foraging if you aren’t 100% certain of your identification DON’T EAT IT. Conditions are more forgiving if you’re looking for dyestuffs because poisons aren’t absorbed through the skin, but you can still get nasty dermatitis.
I have a question. How do you know when you’re having a silent heart attack? I’ve had two which I didn’t even know I had till later. EKG picked up the first one because I was having surgery done and then my doctor had done EKG in his office a couple years later and I had another one. I had no chest pain, no arm pain. If you can could explain it I would be very grateful.
Where do you go when you have a flare-up with a chronic illness? You’re unable to manage the flair at home despite the fact that you’re taking all prescribed medications correctly. Most likely, you know more about your illness than the attending physicians, but you remain respectful (despite the fact that you feel like electricity is shooting from the base the base of your neck to the tip of your toenail) your still patronize as if you’re an idiot & the ER doctor acts as if you’re wasting their time. Urgent Care says there’s nothing they can do. The ER says you need to see your neurologist, not someone in the ER (even though they know most doctor’s office are close by 5:00 p.m. You’re in excruciating pain, you’re multiple sclerosis is acting a damn fool, and you’re thoroughly disrespected and disregarded as low priority in the ER. Where do we go, what should we do? I am asking for myself and the millions of other people who live with chronic illnesses and suffered this indignity!
“I have nothing better to do so I’ll go to the ER and not care about the person in the bed next door to me because they might be dying but they will be sent home because there’s no room to keep them so they’ll die at home so that my stupid sorry arse can waste time getting a check up I don’t need while somebody else goes home to die because of my stupid health anxiety/drug seeking/attention seeking behaviour.”