How to Choose an Urgent Care

First published January 2014
Updated January 2026

Convenience seldom plays a role in the timing of your child’s illness or injury. Take the sudden earache at 3:00 am or a fall down the stairs on Sunday afternoon. Sports injuries are more likely to occur in the evening or on weekends. And what about that asthma attack? Chances are, it began a couple of hours after your doctor’s office closed.

So, what’s a parent to do?

Well, up until a few years ago, there were only two choices: wait it out until the doctor’s office opened or head to the local emergency room for a potentially long wait.

Fast forward to the advent of urgent care centers on every side of town. They’re close. They’re convenient, lurking inside grocery stores and medicine shops with a friendly staff and an empty waiting room. But should you trust them with your child’s health?

That depends.

The first thing to consider is this: children are not little adults. Compared to grown-ups, childhood diseases and injuries look different. They’re treated differently. They have different risks and pitfalls. So, it is important that the provider who sees your child has significant training and experience in pediatric care.

How can you tell if a specific urgent care center is a good fit for YOUR child?

First, plan ahead. Which urgent care centers are closest to your child’s home, school, or ball field? Do they have providers with pediatric training and experience? What about the ability to run lab tests or take X-rays? Once you’ve identified the options, ask your child’s doctor about each facility—before an illness or injury strikes. Your doctor will have the inside scoop on each option, including staff training and experience, and can steer you in the right direction.

Second, when illness or injury does occur (unless you are dealing with a true emergency), talk to your child’s doctor again! Even if the office is closed, someone should be on call to answer your question. Is this something that can wait until Monday morning… or does your child need to be seen NOW! Again, the provider who knows your child best is the right one to ask.

But what about those true emergencies? What if your child has been struck by a car or has fallen from a tree? Maybe there is a serious head injury with loss of consciousness or multiple episodes of vomiting? How about an obviously broken bone or a large, blistered burn? And then there are severe asthma attacks, young babies with fever, and prolonged or unexpected seizures? These situations are critical, and your best bet is to call 911 for immediate care and transfer to an appropriate emergency department.

At the end of the day (literally), urgent care centers can save you from a frustrating wait. They can provide the right diagnosis and the right treatment plan soon after your child’s illness or injury begins. But the wrong urgent care… the one without pediatric expertise… that one might result in the wrong diagnosis or suboptimal treatment, and (rarely) these mistakes could put your child’s health in further danger!

If you’re in Central Ohio, you’re in luck! Why? Because Nationwide Children’s Hospital provides several community-based urgent care centers with the pediatric expertise your doctor is sure to trust!