To go or not to go to the emergency room: signs of when it's necessary and when it's not
A five-year-old child who doesn't have any underlying condition but generally doesn't eat much is not an emergency.
A head contusion, with or without loss of consciousness, is.
It's a common refrain in the news: emergency services are overwhelmed, often because patients don't know how to differentiate between an urgent situation that requires immediate medical attention and something that can be resolved by scheduling an appointment with the appropriate specialist.
The most important thing is to use common sense, although many professionals working in emergency care points out that in this age of immediacy, people often don't take a moment to consider whether they truly need this service or not. If they feel they need a doctor, they head to the emergency clinics.
For this reason, there are some important guidelines that can help determine whether it's necessary to go to the emergency room or simply make an appointment with the corresponding healthcare professional.
Immediate help is needed and 112 should be called when:
- There's a traffic accident with injuries.
- Tightness in the chest and difficulty breathing is detected.
- There's a loss of consciousness.
- Stroke symptoms are present: sudden loss of strength, difficulty speaking, mouth deviation...
- Severe allergic reactions impeding breathing.
- Serious fractures and burns.
Emergency care is necessary in these cases:
- If a patient with a chronic illness experiences a high fever
- If there's difficulty breathing
- When a head contusion occurs, with or without loss of consciousness.
- Unrelenting diarrhea and vomiting
- Traumas causing fractures or deformities that hinder normal movement.
- Minor fractures and burns.
It's not necessary to go to the emergency room; it's better to schedule an appointment with one of our specialists:
- If a child repeatedly exhibits lack of appetite, not associated with any illness or condition.
- When earwax blockages occur
- In the case of skin rashes
- When a wound becomes infected or requires stitches
- If a respiratory infection or high fever persists for more than four days
- If there's suspicion of imperfect vision
- In cases of indigestion
- In cases of potential hearing loss in one or both ears
- If experiencing mild dizziness
In our clinics, we attend to all types of emergencies. However, we'd like to emphasize that not everything that arrives at this service constitutes a true emergency. Therefore, we recommend remaining calm, using common sense, and being patient.
In case of doubt, we advise calling our patient care service first, or obtaining information by contacting the regional health service.
If the issue pertains to medication and its instructions, we are, of course, more than happy to provide the necessary information and guidance to the patient.
Share