The family physician has the monumental task of deciding if a pediatric patient can be treated as an outpatient or needs to be referred to the hospital for further acute care. Some common conditions that may be discharged without referral include the stable child with a minor head injury and balanitis. Others may be complicated by decompensated gastroenteritis or serious bacterial infections such as unstable pneumonia and urinary tract infection in the very young. The younger the child, the more subtle the signs and symptoms are. There is also a higher incidence of congenital conditions like pyloric stenosis in the very young that are unique in this population group. This article summarises such conditions with helpful hints on recognition of abnormal vital signs, and seeks to act as a guide to assist the family physician who may face these patients in his daily practice.