CONWAY, Ark. – As a new parent, any bruise or sniffle can cause concern and it can be tough knowing when to take them to a doctor.

For Baptist Health Conway General Pediatrician, Dr. Janell Vinson, she knows being a parent comes with a lot of questions.

“Is this normal, should I ask about this, or oh we were there today and I forgot to ask Dr. Vinson, but what about this little spot,” Dr. Vinson said.

She said one of the biggest questions is when to treat a child at home versus bringing them to a pediatrician or even an E.R. To ease some of that worry and stress, Baptist Health has an app where parents can ask their pediatrician questions 24/7.

“I can look at that message really quickly, look at that picture and say, ‘ooh I think we should come in and talk about this more’ or ‘oh let’s try this’ or ‘I think that this is fine,'” Dr. Vinson said.

She said the other big concern for parents is how to keep the germs at bay.

“Be aware that, yes there are germs out there and let’s try and do handwashing and that sort of thing, but they are going to put everything in their mouth, they are going to touch everything, they’re going to see everything, they are going to explore everything and that’s the way that they learn,” Dr. Vinson said.

Mother of two, McKenzie Cotton, knows that all too well.

“Especially with my daughter, I was so careful about what she did like I was always trying don’t let people kiss her, don’t let her eat off the floor, don’t put your hands on the ground or touch things and put your hands in your mouth but at daycare you can’t really prevent that,” Cotton said.

In the last year she’s had her fair share of doctors’ visits with her kids.

“We started out with the stomach bug right off the bat,” Cotton said. “Then we also have had a lot of respiratory viruses or colds.”

She said, for the most part, she tries to handle everything at home. When that didn’t work recently, she made the call to Dr. Vinson just before the office closed.

“Dr. Vinson stayed late for me and she ended up having an ear infection and she had several different viruses,” Cotton said.

Cotton said having a pediatrician she can count on has made all the difference.

“She would’ve suffered all weekend probably if she hadn’t of stayed late for me,” Cotton said.