Jessica Chenoweth 
My son Walt is almost 4 now and has never really been sick. It’s partly because during the pandemic he didn’t really go anywhere to catch anything. But even before that, he never really got sick. When he started preschool in February we assumed that he would eventually get sick, but we have been lucky so far.
That was until this week.
Walt woke up Wednesday and seemed fine. Until about 7am when he started crying and would not stop. This can be very common for autistic kids, so when he got to school his teacher said “don’t worry, we got this” and took him in. After about 30 minutes he fell asleep in class and woke up not long after crying. He was taken to the nurses office and he suddenly had a fever that wasn’t there that morning.
Obviously, we picked him up from school and ,with the world being the way it is right now, tested him for COVID. Thankfully, the test was negative but that kid in my car was not my usual happy kid. He could barely keep his eyes open and was burning up. Of course, my mind started to fear the worst.
Should I take him to urgent care? Does he need to see a doctor? He had NEVER been sick like this before and I had no idea what to do.
These are the times I am REALLY glad I have Kaiser. When I called the appointment line, I was on the phone with a doctor in a little over five minutes. She talked me through his symptoms, suggested I start with giving him some Tylenol and scheduled me for a same-day appointment.
He turned out to be fine. Not long after the Tylenol his fever went down and, after a nap, he went back to his normal happy self.
This being our first time having a sick kid, I had no idea what to do. When do you take them to see a doctor when they are feeling sick? When is going to urgent care more appropriate? Or the ER?
I found some really helpful guides to help you make the best decision for your child. This one is great for new parents with a baby:
https://www.rush.edu/news/when-take-your-child-doctor
If you have an older child, this helpful guide with a great infographic can help you out:
https://www.verywellhealth.com/when-to-take-your-child-to-the-doctor-770777
But sometimes you just have to trust your instinct, as pointed out by SheKnows:
https://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/1129322/when-to-take-your-kid-to-the-doctor/
