Sansum Clinic is offering a free online Symptom Checker designed to help parents, caregivers and family members with healthcare decisions when their child is not feeling well, or has a minor injury.
Available in English and Spanish, the Symptom Checker can be accessed from the website pediatrics.sansumclinic.org. Users select the child’s age and gender, then indicate which area of the body requires care.
Key words can also be used to speed the search for answers, so parents can better understand the symptoms and medical conditions a child is experiencing.
The tool provides:
Tips for relieving minor symptoms at home.
Dosage tables by weight for common medications (Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl, Zyrtec and Claritin).
First aid instructions.
Pediatrician-recommended advice for family and discipline issues, sleep problems and more.
The Symptom Checker is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment, but is a resource vetted by Sansum Clinic physicians to provide access to trusted online information, especially helpful when minor symptoms or behavior-related questions arise in the evenings or on weekends.
“We understand that COVID-19 has meant many unexpected challenges for parents and families,” said Dr. Jerold Black. “They will now have 24-7 support at their fingertips when making healthcare decisions for their children.
“It’s exciting to be part of a clinic that is always raising the bar by employing the latest, most innovative technology to serve the needs of our community,” he said.
If a child is experiencing a medical emergency, parent should not use Symptom Checker and should instead call 9-1-1.
Preliminary Symptom Checker data from the first month indicates that users in Santa Barbara, as well as those as far away as San Francisco, took advantage of the online tool to address medical concerns about their children.
Issues ranged from colds and coughs to ear problems and motion sickness, vomiting, and suspected COVID-19. The inclusion of a dosage table for over-the-counter medications was deemed especially helpful for parents of infants.
“We receive many calls to our department from parents looking for this type of dosing information, which is often not listed on the medication packaging, so we wanted to share an accurate source,” said Dr. Saida Hamdani. “The level of detail within the Symptom Checker is impressive, and the data provided is constantly being updated.”
For more information on Sansum Clinic’s Pediatrics Department, 51 Hitchcock Way, Santa Barbara, visit https://pediatrics.sansumclinic.org/.