URGENT CARE VS EMERGENCY

More than half of visits to the emergency room are for non-emergencies. How do parents know when to bring their child to a pediatric urgent care clinic or a pediatric emergency room?  This guide can help:

Urgent Care Clinic

  • Abdominal pain
  • Allergic reactions
  • Asthma
  • Cough
  • Croup
  • Ear pain
  • Fever
  • Flu
  • Minor burns
  • Minor injuries from falls or sports
  • Pink eye
  • Rashes
  • Simple lacerations
  • Sinus infections
  • Skin infections
  • Sore throat
  • Sprains and strains
  • Urinary tract infections
  • Vomiting and diarrhea

Emergency Room/Clinic

  • Bleeding that won’t stop
  • Extensive or complicated cuts or lacerations
  • Fainting or head injury with loss of consciousness or disorientation
  • Loss or change of vision
  • Major fracture that breaks the skin or is at a severe angle
  • Seizures without a previous diagnosis of epilepsy
  • Serious burns
  • Snake bites
  • Spinal injuries
  • Sudden change in mental state
  • Sudden shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • Vomiting or coughing up blood

Any conditions which threaten a child’s life or limb should be treated at a pediatric emergency center, which can also provide initial stabilization for severely injured pediatric patients.