After Hours Questions

The doctors take emergency calls from their homes after hours. Call the main office number, and our answering service will contact our nurse triage service or page the doctor to call you back. Please save routine questions (mild illness, appointments, prescription refills) for the morning when our office is open. We encourage you to refer to our website first, when practical, before calling the office to see if that helps answer your questions.

As your child's medical home, we want to make sure you know where to take your child when our office is closed. You can always call our office for medical guidance regarding whether you should take your child to be seen when we are closed, but if you would not be comfortable without having your child evaluated prior to our office opening, here are some general guidelines to follow.

For life threatening medical emergencies- Call 911 or go to nearest appropriate ER.

For children with difficulty breathing, all infants under 3 months with fever or children less than 2 years of age with fever over 104, severe cold symptoms in children less than 2 years of age, laceration repairs and possible broken bones in young children- Pediatric Emergency Room or Pediatric Urgent Care.

For older children with fever and colds, older children with lacerations or possible broken bones- Pediatric Urgent Care or regular Urgent Care or Emergency Room Care.

While there may be a longer wait or you may have to drive a little farther to get to a pediatric ER or pediatric urgent care, we feel you have a much better chance at receiving an accurate diagnosis and treatment at a facility that specializes in treating children. This is critical to make sure you are prescribed the correct treatment course and given the correct guidance on your child's conditions and when you need to follow up with our office or return for more acute care.

Dr. Wolens and Dr. Badgwell have privileges at Texas Children's Hospital, Woman's Hospital of Texas and Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital. Due to recent changes at some hospitals, we may not be able to take care of your child personally if they need to be admitted there. If you go to another hospital, they may not be able to transfer your child to one of these facilities. If you feel your child may need to be admitted to the hospital, it is best to start at one of the above facilities first. Please note, our doctors may not be able to assist in the care of your child while in the hospital.

For information on handling emergencies in children please refer to KidsHealth/ForKids/Emergency.