09/02/2025
We understand it can be hard to know what type of medical care you need, like whether you should go to the emergency room or wait for your doctor's office to open.
However, we want you to feel secure about your choice for care, which is why we've created a list of symptoms that may indicate you need to visit the emergency room:
-Back pain, when it is unbearable or accompanied by fever, numbness, weakness, confusion, slurred speech, vision loss or loss of control over bladder or bowels
-Broken bones, when the pain is severe or there is a visible deformity
-Chest pain, when it is crushing or squeezing and accompanied by other heart attack symptoms, such as shortness of breath or nausea
-Concussion, when you have lost consciousness, even briefly, or experience amnesia, vomiting, slurred speech or a seizure
-Flu, when symptoms become severe, such as having trouble breathing, vomiting uncontrollably or becoming dehydrated
-Side pain, when it is severe and occurs in the lower right stomach, side or back or is accompanied by fever, nausea, diarrhea or blood in the urine
-Stomach pain, when accompanied by a hard or tender stomach, nausea, shortness of breath, fever or irregular heartbeat
Trouble breathing, when breathing stops, is noisy or high-pitched and comes with pain in the chest or severe shortness of breath
If you are unsure if your symptoms require an emergency room visit, you can speak to a nurse 24/7 by calling our Consult-A-Nurse® team at (888) 685-1598.
HCA Florida Capital Hospital is here for you in an emergency. Learn more https://bit.ly/42cEmhQ.
