What to Expect: Arkansas Children's Hospital Emergency Department

Here are some guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics:

Visit the ER if your child has:

• Difficulty breathing
• Severe allergic reaction (shortness of breath, lip/oral swelling, persistent vomiting, altered mental status)
• High fever with headache and stiff neck
• Suddenly hard to wake up
• Sudden loss of sight, speech or movement
• Broken bone pushing through the skin
• Body part near an injured bone that is numb, tingling, weak, cold or pale
• Heavy bleeding or deep wound
• Serious burn
• Coughing or throwing up blood
• A rapid heartbeat that doesn’t slow down
• Vomiting followed by dry mouth, not crying tears, no urination in more than eight hours or acting very sleepy/"out of it"
• Rectal temperature greater than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit in children less than 2 months old

We hope you never have to bring your child to one of our Emergency Rooms. But if you do, our pediatric experts are ready and waiting to provide your child with the very best care possible, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. 

Here's a video to show you what to expect when you visit the emergency department.