- Medical emergency/police/rescue: 911
- Poison control: 800-222-1222
Life threatening emergencies
Call 911 if your child is experiencing any of these symptoms…
- Increased difficulty of breathing, choking, and/or severe chest pain
- Severe allergic reaction (facial swelling, lip swelling, difficulty breathing, severe vomiting)
- Serious physical injury including fracture or uncontrollable bleeding
- Serious head trauma with loss of consciousness, confusion, and/or vomiting
- Seizures (uncontrollable jerking and unconsciousness)
- Toxic ingestion/poisoning – Any ingestion of a toxic substance requires a call to Poison Control (800.222.1222)
- They may give you further instructions which may include calling 911 if needed
Hospital directions
- Boston Children’s Hospital (Boston, MA)
- South Shore Hospital (Weymouth, MA)
- Newton Wellesley Hospital (Newton, MA)
- Winchester Hospital (Winchester, MA)
If your child has ingested anything that you are concerned may be dangerous (eg. Medications, household products, etc) call poison control immediately and follow the hotline’s advice prior to contacting your physician:
The Poison Control Hotline can give you the most complete, accurate, and immediate advice for almost any ingestion. It is critical to call the hotline immediately upon discovering a potentially harmful ingestion even if your child seems well.
Urgent care during office hours
If your child is sick or injured and you feel your problem is urgent, but not an emergency requiring 911, please call our office (617-277-7320), listen to the prompts and press. You will be immediately connected to a nurse who will assess your problem over the phone. Usually in these situations we can suggest immediate steps you can take to start helping your child and see you promptly in the office. However, occasionally your child’s problem is best taken care of in an emergency room and we will direct you to take your child there
Urgent care after office hours
After regular office hours the same guidelines apply: Call 911 for life-threatening emergencies and our office for urgent problems. After office hours you can call and speak to the answering service, please give them a brief summary of your concerns. You will receive a call and advice from Night Nurse or the on-call physician. If your child needs to be seen in the emergency room at that time, you will be advised and can follow up with your physician the next morning. If you speak to Night Nurse we will receive a report and will follow up with you the next morning. However, if you know your child needs to be seen in the office the next day, please go ahead and call the next morning to make an appointment.
Night Nurse is a leading pediatric advice service that provides experienced pediatric nurse practitioners and nurses who can assess your child’s symptoms and answer urgent health questions over the phone after office hours. They bring a wealth of clinical expertise to their contacts with you, and parents appreciate Night Nurse’s prompt responses and detailed, helpful advice.
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