Cook Children's Emergency Services

Call 9-1-1 for emergencies

Transport services

Driving directions

Does your child need emergency care right now? Call 9-1-1.

If your child has a condition that seems life threatening or might cause permanent harm, call 9-1-1 for immediate care and transport by ambulance. Our emergency room is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Cook Children's Emergency Department is not a walk-up COVID-19 testing site.

If your child is admitted, our medical staff will decide if your child needs a test. Please click here to find local testing sites near you.

Referring physicians

Need to transfer a patient to Cook Children's Emergency Room? For immediate transport, call 1-800-KID-HURT

Patients come from around town, across Texas and even neighboring states. Our transport team is specially trained and equipped to bring neonatal and pediatric patients to us for care.

Call transport now

Our team

Cook Children's Emergency Department team is specially trained to treat children with serious illnesses and injuries. As a Level II trauma center, we provide 24-hour pediatric and surgical care with access to experts from more than 60 specialties. We can see your child promptly, with wait times below the national average.

Our Child Life specialists, Spanish-speaking translators and social workers are here to help answer your questions and comfort your child. And we'll connect you with any specialty or follow-up care needed when your child is ready to go home.

Location and parking

Cook Children's Emergency Room is located at 886 6th Ave. in Fort Worth. If you're driving, park across the street in the garage at the southwest corner of 6th and West Terrell Avenue. It has an "emergency parking" sign above the entrance.

Once you cross the street, walk toward the red and white “emergency” signs. Our department's entrance is under the red awning.

When to take your child to the ER

When your child is sick or injured, we know you want to find care quickly. Come to the emergency room for:

Broken bones that you can see or that cause the injured area to look deformed
Cast problems if primary care or urgent care are closed
Cuts in which bleeding won't stop
Dehydration
Fainting after exercise or other activity
Fever, if your child is under 2 months old
Head injury with loss of consciousness, confusion or vomiting
Loss of consciousness or unresponsiveness
Poisoning
Serious burns, such as to eyes, from electrical or acid exposure, or that are infected or blistered
Severe allergic reaction, such as trouble breathing
Severe breathing problems or wheezing from conditions such as asthma, croup and pneumonia
Seizures
Shock from sudden drop in blood flow
Trouble swallowing after swallowing an object

For children who need medical attention for less critical conditions, find Cook Children's Urgent Care Centers located across the Metroplex. You can also find a Cook Children's pediatrician.

For more help on when to consider the ER and when to consider urgent care or your pediatrician's office, download and print this guide [PDF].

What to expect at our pediatric emergency room

We know you want your child to feel better as soon as possible. So do we. We're here to guide you through every step of your child's care.

What to bring with you

When you come to the ER, it's helpful to bring:

Your medical insurance card
Name and phone number of your child's pediatrician
List of your child's medications

When you arrive at the ER

Our dedicated medical team is ready to help. If you have questions, just ask. Here are the steps you can expect for your child's care:

Check in: A paramedic will ask you questions and take a quick look at your child. Very sick children get sent for immediate medical care, while others get registered and further evaluated to determine their need.
Evaluation: Our nurses will examine your child, taking temperature and blood pressure and listening to the heart and lungs. They'll also ask you questions and determine when you can go back to an exam room. We treat those children with the most serious illnesses or injuries first.
Short wait (possibly): If you need to wait to see a doctor, you'll go to our child-friendly waiting room. You'll find movies and activities to help entertain your child. A nurse and a paramedic stay in the waiting room to monitor children and answer questions.
Treatment: When it's your turn, one of our pediatricians will examine your child. You'll be asked questions about your child's condition and health history, such as allergies and past illnesses and surgeries. A Child Life specialist is available to help comfort your child and explain any tests or procedures that may be needed.
Extra support: Our Spanish-language translators can help you when you see our medical team. And our social workers can help connect you with resources to care for your child. Our CARE team members can provide support if your child has experienced a physical or sexual assault.
Discharge: When you're cleared to leave, we'll explain what you need to do at home and what you may need to watch for. We'll also discuss any follow-up care your child needs. Our resource nurse will help arrange appointments with any Cook Children's specialists for additional care.

About the Cook Children's Emergency Department

In a typical year, we treat more than 120,000 patients in our Emergency Department. When you turn to Cook Children's for emergency care, you'll find:

High quality care

Cook Children's Emergency Department is a Level II trauma center and offers emergency surgical and specialty care 24/7. We have the staffing and space to provide prompt care, with four trauma rooms, 77 beds and 10 triage areas. We can also provide computed tomography (CT) scans within the ER.

We are the only Emergency Medical Services (EMS)-designated pediatric trauma center in Tarrant County.
We have a Short Stay Observation Unit to monitor patients who need extra time for treatment.

Team of experts

Unlike the doctors in many ERs, ours are board certified, meaning they've gone through additional training and exams. Most are pediatric emergency medicine specialists, with several pediatricians as well. They're joined by physician assistants, nurses, paramedics and respiratory therapists specially trained in pediatric emergency care. Some support staff specialize in wound care and orthopedic help as well.

Top nurses

Cook Children's was one of 33 hospitals in the world to receive the coveted Lantern Award from the Emergency Nurses Association in July 2021. The award recognizes new initiatives developed by our nurses and medical team, such as sepsis infection screening and suicide prevention programs.

First aid and safety resources

We're committed to keeping you, your family and our community safe and healthy. See these resources for safety tips: