Should I take My Child to the ER?

Urgent care is not a substitute for emergency care. Serious or life-threatening problems should be handled in the emergency room. If your child experiences any of the following symptoms, don't wait! Call 911 or get to your nearest hospital ER.

• Loss of consciousness
• Severe abdominal pain
• Difficulty breathing/shortness of breath
• Fever with stiff neck, dark rash, inconsolable crying or difficulty waking up
• Deep cuts or bleeding that won't stop
• Coughing up or vomiting blood
• Severe burns
• Seizures
• Allergic reaction with difficulty breathing, loss of consciousness, or swelling of the tongue, lips or airway
• Vomiting, blurred vision, severe headache, loss of motor skills or bleeding from the nose/ears following a fall or head injury
• Signs of shock: chills, blue lips or fingernails, severe pain, dizziness or rapid breathing
• Objects impaled in the body
• Severe bites (animal or human)
• Heat stroke, frostbite, hypothermia

For poisoning, call your local poison control center. In Springfield, Missouri, call 1-800-366-8888.