Emergency Care

Emergency Care

In case of emergency, call 9-1-1 now.

When you or your family face an emergency, you need help fast. Choose OU Health emergency services locations across the Oklahoma City metro and in Tulsa. Or, choose convenient urgent care locations.

Find Nearby Emergency Room or Urgent Care

Find an OU Health emergency room or urgent care near you.

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OU Health University of Oklahoma Medical Center

At OU Health University of Oklahoma Medical Center, you’ll find Oklahoma only Level 1 trauma center, the highest possible national designation verified by the American College of Surgeons (ACoS). You receive expert care from a multidisciplinary team of doctors, nurses, healthcare staff and specialists capable of treating the most severe and critical injuries 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

For prompt heart and vascular care, including heart attack or stroke, you’ll find a cardiac/electrophysiology lab open around the clock. In addition, you benefit from a trauma surgeon in the hospital 24/7 and an always-available operating room. Our nationally recognized Comprehensive Stroke Center provides immediate and continuous care throughout your treatment and beyond. You’re also directly connected to Oklahoma Children’s Hospital at OU Health for prompt pediatric emergency care.

Find OU Health University of Oklahoma Medical Center ER

How You Benefit

No matter what your health concern—from broken bones, open wounds or drug/medication side effects to farm accidents, car crashes and situations most emergency rooms can’t handle—you’re in good hands with OU Health's emergency services, including our Level I trauma center and air ambulances, dispatched in minutes to airlift you or your loved one to our Oklahoma City hospital.

You benefit from quick response by skilled medical specialists and board-certified surgeons who bring their years of education and experience to address your specific condition.

Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health

Whenever your child needs emergency care, choose Oklahoma Children’s Hospital, with the only pediatric emergency room in the Oklahoma City metro open 24/7 with doctors, nurses and equipment specialized for children. Oklahoma Children's Hospital has the state's only dedicated pediatric and air ambulances - Air Kids One and Ground Kids One.

Child Life Specialists for Age-Appropriate Care

Your child will feel more comfortable with an on-hand Child Life specialist who explains procedures and equipment in an age-appropriate way and engages them in health-related issues using play. As a valued member of the care team surrounding your child and family, you’re involved in decisions about treatment, and you’ll learn how to provide any care needed when you and your child return home, with instructions available in English or Español.

Oklahoma Children's hospital ou health ER

OU Health Edmond Medical Center

Rely on Edmond Medical Center for exceptional community-based emergency care backed by the expertise, tools and research of the OU Health family of hospitals and emergency departments, including Oklahoma Children’s Hospital.

Take advantage of Edmond’s only hospital with 24/7 urology services, emergency general surgery and orthopedic care, as well as our senior-friendly ER, where you or a loved one age 65 or over benefit from access to specialized hearing and visual aids, if needed, as well as assessments for delirium and fall risk. A senior services social worker will work exclusively with senior ER patients to ensure a continuity of care from ER to home.

At Edmond Medical Center, designated as a hospital that meets national guidelines established by NICHE (Nurses Improving Care for Health System Elders), you receive compassionate care from all hospital staff, including nurses specially trained to meet the specific needs of seniors.

As part of your care, you’ll talk with OU Health social workers for information about other available resources and services in our community to help you and your loved ones stay active and healthy.

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OU Health Emergency Care in Tulsa

In Tulsa, you’ll find OU Health’s emergency medicine specialists available to deliver expert care at local hospitals. Take advantage of their skill and experience when you need immediate care in northeast Oklahoma for serious injury or illness.

When to Use an Urgent Care Clinic

See your primary care doctor or use an urgent care clinic for most typical health conditions, including:

  • Coughs, colds, sore throat
  • Ear infection
  • Minor burns or injuries
  • Sprained ankle

Urgent care clinics – doctor-staffed, walk-in medical facilities – offer an alternative for non-emergency situations and when you don't have access to your personal doctor. Although often more expensive than seeing your own physician, urgent care clinics are less expensive than an emergency room visit. An urgent care center usually offers immediate access to simple laboratory procedures.

The Urgent Care Association of America says that, regardless of the name, these facilities treat minor or acutely rising medical conditions that people may feel require immediate medical attention but that actually are not medical emergencies. Non-urgent conditions can generally wait for treatment by scheduled appointment in a primary care office, while medical emergencies involving trauma or resuscitation should go straight to a hospital emergency room.

View all urgent care Locations

When to Go to the Emergency Room

The American Academy of Emergency Physicians identifies warning signs of a medical emergency that needs immediate care:

  • Chest pains or upper abdominal pain lasting at least two minutes
  • Uncontrolled bleeding
  • Sudden or severe pain, unusual abdominal pain
  • Coughing or vomiting blood
  • Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
  • Sudden dizziness, weakness; any changes in vision
  • Severe or persistent vomiting or diarrhea
  • Change in mental status such as confusion
  • Difficulty speaking
  • Suicidal or homicidal thoughts
  • Fever or flu-like symptoms – Severe flu may require hospitalization
  • Allergic reactions – May be severe or life-threatening
  • Broken bones
  • Animal bites – May be significant or carry other diseases

Find out more about when to use the Emergency Room (ER).

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