Your child’s safety and well-being is our primary concern at Advanced Pediatrics of Rockland. Our team brings years of experience caring for families and helping them respond to emergency situations quickly and effectively. It’s almost inevitable that your child will swallow something they shouldn’t during their developmental years. This can cause great concern for the parent and potentially put the child’s health at risk. Do you know what to do if your child swallows something they shouldn’t have?

First Steps Following Your Child Swallowing A Foreign Object

If your child has swallowed something they shouldn’t have, it’s critical that you remain calm and carefully consider the situation. Your child may not need emergency care, so it’s important to know when it’s required and what kind of care to seek. If your child is having trouble breathing, choking, or turning blue, it’s time to call 911. If your child isn’t showing immediate symptoms, your next step depends on what they swallowed.

What to if your child has swallowed:

• Any sharp or magnetic object: These pose a significant risk to your child’s health and indicate an immediate need to go to the ER.
• Any solid non-digestible object: Contact our office and ask to speak to a member of our medical team. We’ll get you your next steps and let you know if you need to go to the ER.
• Medication Or Other Substance: Your first call should be to the poison control center at 1-800-222-1222. Be sure to have the type of medication they’ve swallowed and how much they may have taken.

Most things your child will swallow fall into one of these two categories. Following the above suggestions lets you quickly get information about your next steps. If your child has swallowed anything known to be poisonous, you should immediately call 911 and follow that with a call to the poison control center while help is on the way.

In the event that you are told that the condition is non-emergent and a solid object was swallowed, your next steps will typically include watching for signs of distress and monitoring their bowel movements. Vomiting, drooling, and difficulty breathing all indicate the object might be stuck, and medical care may be needed. You should also monitor their bowel movements. If the object has not passed in 24-48 hours, contact our office to learn what your next steps should be.

Learn Other Tips For Responding To Childhood Mishaps

The most important part of helping our children grow up healthy and safe is knowing what to do when things go wrong. When you reach out to our office at (845) 364-9800, you’ll be taking the first step to working with a team dedicated to your child’s well-being. We’re committed to helping our patients in Pomona, NY, and the surrounding areas grow up healthy, active, and safe. If you’re ready to learn more about protecting your child against childhood mishaps, then reach out and give us a call today!