Emergency or Urgent Care?
When to Go to an Emergency Department
Call 911 or go to an Emergency Department (ED) if your child has a serious or life-threatening illness or injury, or signs of a mental or behavioral health emergency. See table below to help you figure out where to go for care.
Seattle Children’s ED is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. No appointment is needed. Call your child’s doctor to ask about follow-up care after their ED visit.
Signs of a mental or behavioral health emergency include:
- Your child is at immediate risk for harm due to suicidal thoughts or feelings, or requires emergency medical care due to self-harm or a suicide attempt
- Your child is at immediate risk of harming others
- Your child cannot take part in safety planning to avoid self-harm
- Your child has lost the ability to care for themselves or do the basic tasks needed to keep themselves clean or healthy
- You are concerned you cannot keep your child safe until their appointment
When to Go to an Urgent Care
You can go to an urgent care when your child has an illness or injury that is not a medical emergency or life-threatening, and you cannot get into your primary care provider. A referral is not required.
Seattle Children’s currently has 3 urgent care options:
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Urgent Care
Offers in-person and telehealth (video) Urgent Care visits for certain medical illnesses and injuries. Treats medical needs only; does not treat mental or behavioral health concerns.
- Hours: In-person and virtual urgent care services are available 365 days a year, including holidays. Hours vary by location.
- Locations: In-person clinics in Bellevue, Everett, Federal Way and Seattle. Video visits anywhere in Washington state.
- How to schedule a visit: Click here to schedule a same-day in-person or video visit or call 206-987-2211 for a same-day appointment. Limited walk-in visits available.
- Urgent Care offers X-ray services. We will transfer you to our Emergency Department if your child needs an ultrasound, CT scan or MRI study.
Urgent Care does not provide the following services
Talk with your primary care provider if you need:
- Well-child check-ups
- Return-to-play evaluations after a concussion
- Sports or camp physicals
- Leave of absence (LOA) or Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) forms
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Orthopedic Injury Urgent Care
Offers in-person visits for for children, teens and young adults up to their 21st birthday with urgent orthopedic and sports-related injuries that occurred within the last 48 hours and do not need the services of an emergency department. This includes sprains, strains and broken bones. X-ray, casting and bracing services are available.
- Hours: In-person Orthopedic Injury Urgent Care services are available from 5 to 9 p.m., Monday through Friday. Closed on major holidays. The last walk-in visit is at 8 p.m.
- Location: Seattle Children’s Hospital, 4800 Sand Point Way NE in Seattle, Ocean 6 zone
- How to schedule a visit: We accept mostly walk-in visits, with a few scheduled appointments available daily. Schedule a same-day, in-person appointment at Seattle Children’s Hospital campus in Seattle.
Orthopedic Injury Urgent Care does not care for the following concerns
- Chronic pain (pain that is ongoing for more than 30 days)
- Concussion
- Cuts
- Nailbed injuries
- Open wounds near possible bone break
- Severe broken bones (bent, curved or look deformed)
We do not provide or at Orthopedic Injury Urgent Care. If needed, we will place an order so you can get the tests done at a Seattle Children’s location after your visit to our clinic.
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Psychiatric Urgent Care
Offers same-day urgent mental health support for children and teens ages 4 through 17 who do not need the services of an emergency department. Learn when to go to Psychiatric Urgent Care and when to go to the ED to treat mental or behavioral health concerns.
- Hours: Daily from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Closed on major holidays.
- Location: In person at Seattle Children’s Magnuson at 6901 Sand Point Way NE in Seattle or by video visit anywhere in Washington state.
- How to schedule a visit:
- Click here to schedule a same-day in-person visit. Limited walk-in visits available.
- Click here to get in the virtual line for a video visit.
Psychiatric Urgent Care does not provide the following services
- Diagnostic evaluations for autism spectrum disorder
- Return-to-school evaluations
- Forms, including forms for court, child protective services or school placement
- Additional documentation beyond what is in the medical record
- Ongoing mental health treatment
- Medical assessments, laboratory tests, physical exams or tests to diagnose medical problems
For help finding a community mental health provider for non-urgent mental and behavioral health needs, contact the Washington Mental Health Referral Service for Children and Teens. It is a free service that connects families with evidence-based mental health treatment in the community.
Where to Go For Care
If you’re not sure where to bring your child, use our guide below.
The symptoms marked with an * can be seen through Virtual Urgent Care.
Call 911 or go to an ED if your child has a serious or life-threatening illness or injury, or signs of a mental or behavioral health emergency.
- In English: Your Doctor, Urgent Care or the Emergency Department? (PDF)
- In Simplified Chinese: 您的医生、急诊处或急诊科？ (PDF)
- In Somali: Dhaqtarkaaga, Daryeelka Degdegga ah ama Waaxda Gurmadka Degdegga ah? (PDF)
- In Spanish: ¿Pediatra, Urgencias o el Departamento de Emergencias? (PDF)
- In Vietnamese: Bác sĩ, Dịch vụ Chăm sóc Khẩn cấp hay Khoa Cấp cứu? (PDF)