Quality care is in your neighborhood at Medical City ER Garland, a department of Medical City Dallas. Opened in April 2024, the 11,000 square-foot facility has the capabilities to treat adult and pediatric patients of all ages with 10 private patient treatment rooms, including a trauma room, a full laboratory and a radiology suite with X-ray and CT imaging.

Adult and pediatric patients at Medical City ER Garland can expect to receive all the same services as a hospital emergency room but with the added convenience of shorter wait times and a freestanding location close to home. We can offer shorter wait times because of the way we triage patients.

If necessary, you can expect to be seen quickly by an emergency physician and receive appropriate treatment, including immediate and safe pain control. Before you’re discharged, your attending physician will review your care plan and provide follow-up instructions.

If your attending physician determines that you need to be admitted to the hospital, we provide a seamless transition into the care of Medical City Dallas.

Knowing what to do when someone you love is sick or injured can be challenging. Planning ahead and knowing your care choices will make facing an emergency easier.

Seek emergency care at your closest ER for severe, non-life-threatening injuries and illness, including:

• Asthma, allergic reactions and breathing problems
• Severe shortness of breath—caused by asthma, allergies, colds, flu, pneumonia, chronic health conditions such as COPD or heart disease—is a medical emergency. Call 911 if you think the condition is life-threatening. Otherwise, seek immediate treatment at the closest ER.

The extent of injuries from falls, sports, chores or just plain living is often hard to diagnose without an X-ray and a medical exam. Sometimes, you’ll be able to tell a bone is obviously fractured, but most often, you’ll need a medical professional for a correct diagnosis. Soft tissue injuries can pose problems, too, if left untreated.

Injuries that present with any of the following symptoms should be treated right away:

• Intense pain or pain lasting longer than a few days after a fall or injury
• Swelling, bruising or bleeding
• Numbness and tingling
• Favoring an arm or leg
• Unable to walk or walking crooked

Lower back pain is the single leading cause of disability worldwide, with 31 million Americans suffering from this condition at any given time. With the exception of back pain caused by a traumatic injury, most back pain doesn’t require emergency treatment. However, sometimes, your back pain symptoms indicate another illness—such as kidney stones or kidney infections—which may require a trip to the ER.

You should seek immediate treatment for back pain accompanied by:

• High fever
• History of infection
• History of port or IV use
• Problems or changes in bowel movements or urine
• Numbness in the "saddle" area
• Muscle weakness in extremities, such as being unable to walk or dragging a foot

Very rarely does a heart attack begin with dramatic symptoms. Most people having a heart attack don't realize it. That's because the vast majority of heart attacks happen slowly, with just discomfort or mild pain. Patients often aren't sure what's wrong and don't get help soon enough.

Head injuries are a common complaint in the ER and require a quick evaluation and a CT scan to rule out a surgical emergency such as bleeding on the brain.

Signs of a serious head injury or concussion include:

• Severe or persistent headache or neck pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Balance and coordination issues
• Speech and memory problems
• Blurred vision or photophobia (sensitivity to light and sound)
• Ringing ears or trouble hearing
• Changes in sleep patterns or moods
• Seizures

Most people who come down with the flu will recover within one to two weeks, but some people will develop more serious illnesses. Adults 65 years old and older, pregnant women, children five years old and younger, infants and patients with certain conditions, like chronic obstructed pulmonary disease (COPD), may experience more complications from the flu than usual. These complications can sometimes result in life-threatening issues, such as pneumonia or bronchitis. If you or a loved one is experiencing severe flu symptoms, visit your nearest ER.

If you are having a medical emergency, call 911.

Chest discomfort: Discomfort in the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes that comes and goes. Chest discomfort is also described as uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.

Discomfort in other upper body areas: Symptoms can include pain or discomfort radiating to one or both arms, the back, neck, or jaw.

Shortness of breath: This may occur with or without chest discomfort.

Other symptoms may include:

• Breaking out in a cold sweat
• Abdominal pain
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Dizziness or lightheadedness
• Heartburn

Fevers are a normal reaction when the body is fighting infection, however, a high fever that doesn’t go away with medication or is accompanied by other symptoms needs to be checked out. In fact, often the absolute number on the thermometer isn't as important as how the patient is acting and whether or not there are accompanying symptoms, such as severe headache or stomach pain, confusion, trouble breathing, stiff neck or vomiting and diarrhea.

If there are no other symptoms, here’s when to seek medical help for a high fever:

• Infants under three months old–100.4ºF or higher
• Children three months to three years old–102.2ºF or higher
• Children three to 17 years old–102ºF for two or more days
• Adults 18 years old and older–102ºF for more than three days or 104ºF or higher

Stomach pain is one of the leading reasons both adults and children go to the ER. Though abdominal pain can sometimes be minor and temporary, some instances of stomach pain may be symptoms of serious medical conditions. Gastrointestinal care is available at our ERs. You should seek immediate care for stomach pain that is:

• Accompanied by a high fever, vomiting or other serious or unusual symptoms
• Severe or lasting more than 24 hours
• Localized to one specific area
• Right lower quadrant could indicate appendicitis
• Right upper quadrant could indicate cholecystitis or a gallbladder infection
• Left lower quadrant could indicate diverticulitis or a colon infection

The questions below were developed by an ER doctor for her friends and family and can be used to help decide if you should go to the ER with stomach pain.

• Severity: Does it hurt so badly that it’s hard or impossible to concentrate or perform normal activities?
• Vomiting: While vomiting doesn’t automatically signal a trip to the ER, if you’re unable to keep down fluids or are vomiting up blood, it’s time to go.
• Output: Are your stools a different color than normal, such as bloody or dark black (also potentially a sign of bleeding) or are you having diarrhea? Like vomiting, diarrhea isn’t necessarily serious unless it causes dehydration. If you’re unable to keep down liquids and you’re having excessive diarrhea, you may need to have fluids administered. What about changes to your urine? Are you going more or less than normal? Is it bloody or another unusual color?
• Other symptoms: Are you having difficulty breathing? Chest pain? Does your abdominal pain spread directly to your back?
• Health history: Have you recently suffered an abdominal injury or had abdominal surgery? Are you pregnant or have you recently given birth? Are you on chemotherapy or do you have any other conditions that could compromise your immune system?

Receiving immediate stroke care is imperative for the best outcomes possible. It is not always clear if someone is experiencing symptoms of a stroke.

If you're unsure, remember to think F.A.S.T.:

• F = Face drooping
• A = Arm weakness
• S = Speech difficulty
• T = Time to call 911