When you come to the hospital, there are signs showing you where to park. When you enter through the main doors of the emergency department, someone will let you know which direction to go for the Children’s Emergency Department.
Once you are in our Children’s Emergency Department, you will be met by a nurse at the front entrance. The nurse will ask you details about why your child needs to see a doctor. You will be asked to share some information with us, such as your child’s health history, immunization status and medications that you may have given or that the child normally takes.
You and your child will be placed in a private room that will have a stretcher and chairs for you to sit on. A registration clerk will stop by and ask you to confirm your child’s information. This includes their birthday, home address and if you have a family doctor.
A pediatrician (a doctor that specializes in caring for children) and a nurse will ask for more details on the concerns you may have or the symptoms your child may be feeling. If your child is old enough to answer these questions, the pediatrician and nurse will ask both of you for your responses.
An assessment will be completed. Based on the findings, the pediatrician may order some tests or treatments. These could include blood tests, x-rays or medications. Your child may have to wait for these tests and treatments. You may be asked to wait in another area.
The pediatrician and nurses will also come back to reassess your child, making sure the tests and treatments are complete. If your child has improved, the pediatrician will send you home with instructions to come back if your concerns return. If your child’s condition has not improved, they may be admitted to the hospital to stay overnight.
Nurses will ensure everything is explained to you clearly and will provide directions to other areas of the hospital if needed.
If the Children’s Emergency Department is very busy, you may need to wait to see a pediatrician. Children are seen in order of urgency, so others might be seen before you. It's important that during your wait, you notify the nursing staff child’s condition is getting worse or changing.
If you and your child are coming into the hospital by ambulance or with the pediatric transport team, you will go into the emergency department through the ambulance entrance. From there:
- Your child will be met by the pediatrician, nurse and registration clerk in a private room. There will be many things happening at once, but this is all to help your child as quickly as possible.
- Your child will be assessed and treatments will be started.
- We will ask questions about what has happened that brought your child to the emergency department.
- The pediatrician may call additional doctors, like an intensive care doctor or a surgeon, to help care for your child.
- The nurses and a social worker will help explain everything that is happening.