CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center is seeing more patients with respiratory illness and the flu.
That increase leads to overcrowded emergency rooms and long wait times at urgent care locations.
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital urgent cares treated more than 1,600 patients last week, while emergency departments saw over 2,000 children. Kaitlyn Japikse, a mom from Anderson Township, said she saw a recent wait time of 270 minutes.
When her son Zachary was sick on a Saturday, she attended her usual urgent care.
“At 2 p.m., the first available appointment at Children’s Urgent Care in Anderson was at 9:15 p.m.,” Japikse said.
Children's does provide an option to provide relief without leaving your home.
That’s when she remembered the Cincy Kids Health Connect app, which allows parents to schedule virtual visits to assess minor injuries and illnesses such as fever, colds, eye infections, rashes, and COVID-19 concerns.
“It’s such a game changer,” said Japikse.
Watch more about the surge of patients and alternative options below:
Before you go that route, you can review a full list of symptoms that can be treated with a virtual visit.
Children’s Hospital Nurse Practitioner Amy DeToro reminds parents that while not every condition can be treated virtually, it can be a practical starting point.
"If you’re on the fence, you can connect with us. If we feel you need to be seen in person, we will refund your visit," DeToro said.
A virtual visit costs a flat fee of $48, potentially saving time, money, and exposure to other germs.
“You’re avoiding the crowded emergency departments and urgent care lobbies,” DeToro added.
Wait times for virtual urgent care can range from five to 10 minutes up to an hour.
If further testing is required, patients can walk into a Children’s Hospital lab, as Zachary did.
"If we get a positive strep test, we can call the family back and prescribe their medications to their preferred pharmacy," DeToro explained.
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital virtual urgent care providers treated 188 patients last week and are prepared to see more.
"We won’t prescribe antibiotics without physically seeing the ear," DeToro said.
Like many other parents, Japikse is always looking for a better way to care for her family.
“It’s a really nice little tool in our toolbox. We don’t always use it, but it’s a valuable resource."
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital offers care to children from Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana, with families often traveling from two to three hours away to access this vital resource.
A journalist initially reported this story, which was, in part, converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Watch Live:
