Urgent care or your pediatrician? Where to take a sick child

Why your pediatrician first?

We know your child: allergies, past illnesses, growth, medicines, what is normal for them. That history changes decisions. A child with asthma and a cough is not the same as a child without it, and a fever in a child who had a urinary infection last year gets a different work-up. Urgent care starts from zero every time.

Continuity also means follow-up. When we treat an ear infection or a wheeze, we already know when to recheck, and the visit lives in the same record as the well visits and vaccines. Sick visits with us are same day on weekdays, in the office or by telehealth, and your copayment is usually lower than at urgent care and far lower than the ER.

For families on Georgia Medicaid or an HMO plan there is a practical reason too: referrals and authorizations run through the primary care provider, so care that starts with us moves faster.

When urgent care makes sense

• Evenings, weekends and holidays, for something that cannot wait until we open
• Minor injuries such as a cut that may need stitches, a sprain or a possible simple fracture
• When you are travelling and cannot reach us
• A rapid strep, flu or COVID-19 test after hours, so treatment can start sooner

Choose a pediatric urgent care when you can, such as those run by Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and ask them to send us the visit summary.

When to go to the ER or call 911

• Trouble breathing, blue or gray lips, or breathing much faster than usual
• A seizure, or a child who is very hard to wake
• A baby under 3 months with a temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher
• A serious injury: a head injury with vomiting or confusion, a deep wound, a bone out of shape
• Severe allergic reaction with swelling of the face or throat
• Signs of dehydration in a baby or toddler: no wet diaper for 8 hours, no tears, a sunken soft spot
• Poisoning or a swallowed battery or magnet: call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 on the way

What urgent care cannot do

Urgent care clinics are built for one visit. They do not manage asthma plans, ADHD medicines, growth concerns or anything that needs a second look. They are also more likely to prescribe an antibiotic for a virus, because the safest option for a clinician who will never see your child again is to treat. Our advice can be “wait and watch”, because we will see you again.

After an urgent care or ER visit

Call or message us the next business day. We review the visit note, adjust any medicine, and schedule a recheck if one is needed. Ask the clinic to fax records to (770) 884-4170 or upload them in the portal. Keeping everything in one record protects your child at the next visit, wherever it happens.

A quick guide

• Fever in a child over 3 months, cough, cold, sore throat, ear pain, rash, vomiting or diarrhea: call or text us, same-day visit
• Same symptoms on a weekend or evening and your child is comfortable: wait until morning and call us
• Same symptoms and your child is getting worse, cannot keep fluids down, or you are worried: urgent care
• Anything on the ER list above: ER or 911, and tell us afterwards