Emergencies with children

"Let's watch it a little longer" is sometimes dangerous. Children worsen faster than adults.

Call 119 immediately for

• Struggling to breathe — wheezing, ribs pulling in, blue lips.
• Drowsiness or no response.
• A seizure lasting over five minutes or repeating.
• Choking after swallowing something. See choking-first-aid.
• A hard blow to the head followed by vomiting or lethargy.
• Severe dehydration — no urine for over eight hours and floppy.
• A fever of 38°C or above in a baby under three months.
• Burns or poisoning (swallowed medicine or detergent). See burns-first-aid and poisoning.

What you can do now

1. Call 119 and state the child's age and symptoms.
2. Use 1339 or e-gen.or.kr to find an ER that handles paediatric cases — a general ER may not.
3. Bring the container of anything swallowed.
4. During a seizure put nothing in the mouth and lay the child on their side.
5. Follow the phone guidance until 119 arrives — they can talk you through CPR. See cpr-emergency.

At night or on holidays

• Moonlight Children's Hospitals provide paediatric care at night and on holidays, by region.
• Call 1339 to be directed to somewhere open.
• If it isn't an emergency, a paediatrician the next day is also an option. See night-clinic.

Where to go

• 119 ambulance
• 1339 Emergency Medical Information Centre
• e-gen.or.kr emergency portal (paediatric ER search)
• 1577-1366 Danuri Call Centre (interpretation)
• 129 Health and Welfare Call Centre

Questions people ask

The fever is high — should we go to the ER? Under three months, always seek care. Older than that, go if the child is lethargic, not feeding, or has a seizure. See child-fever.

My Korean is weak — can I explain? Use 1577-1366 interpretation. Translating and noting the symptoms in advance helps. See medical-interpreter.

My child has no health insurance. Emergency care is still available. Ask about the advance scheme and support. See medical-emergency-no-money.

Does calling an ambulance cost money? The 119 ambulance is free. Private ambulances charge. See ambulance-cost.

Take care

Never give a child an adult dose. Fever medicine is dosed by weight. Keep medicines, detergents and batteries out of reach. A swallowed button battery is an emergency. See child-safety.

Related

child-fever · choking-first-aid · cpr-emergency · night-clinic · medical-emergency-no-money

Source

Emergency Medical Portal www.e-gen.or.kr / As of 2026-08