An emergency is a sudden injury, illness or condition that poses an immediate risk to a person’s life or long-term health. Some examples of conditions that may need emergency medical care include:
- Heart attack symptoms like chest pain
- Trouble breathing or shortness of breath
- Convulsions, seizures or loss of consciousness
- Stroke symptoms such as, loss of movement of half your body, loss of speech, severe dizziness
- Severe abdominal pain
- Pregnancy-related emergencies
- Overdose or poisoning
- Trauma or injury to the head, neck or back
- Broken bones
- Serious allergic reactions and skin rashes
- Severe asthma attacks
- Fever in infants 3 months or younger
- Moderate to severe burns
- Severely ill or injured children
- Suicidal or homicidal feelings or other mental health issues