Telephone Advice Book

(click the above link to view)

Your doctors at Carithers Pediatrics realize that many problems come up at night and on the weekends when we are not in the office. Over the years, we have found that we receive many phone calls about the same medical problems. In this telephone advice book, we have tried to answer the most commonly asked questions.

When your child gets sick or has a medical problem, we would like you to consult this book before going to the phone. Most medical problems can be handled through the night with the advice in this book. If after trying the advice in the book, your child has not improved, then we want you to call us. If you feel your child has a life-threatening emergency, call 911. Please read the entire section written about your child’s problem before starting treatment. Please read through this book before you need it so that you know what it contains.

We have also subscribed to the American Academy of Pediatrics Symptom Checker to help you work through some of the symptoms your child may be experiencing. This valuable tool allows you to ask about an array of symptoms to help guide you in the care and evaluation of your child.

As you know, we see sick children every day of the year, so please call us during office hours if your child has had a bad night or if you feel he or she may need an appointment. When you go on vacation, take it with you, and feel free to request a copy for grandparents or babysitters.

Urgent evening and weekend calls are made to the office’s numbers, not to the doctors’ home numbers. On weekends, a nurse will assist you with your urgent calls if they are made early in the morning. 

Waiting for return calls sometimes require patience on your part, but be assured your call will be returned. If you have not received a return call in twenty minutes, please try again. Occasionally, the answering service “drops” calls. If ever our office number is not answered, there may be trouble with the line. In that case, please call 807-7000, the answering service’s switchboard number.