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Sickness, accidents:
what to do in an emergency
Emergency telephone numbers:
Call 15
: this is the national emergency number for medical aid. It
will get you the SAMU service, with an ambulance (Service d'Aide
Médical d'Urgence
- or Medical Emergency Aid Service). Be prepared to indicate exactly
where you are located, and the circumstances of the incident.
Call 18:
this is the general emergency number, like 999 in the UK, which will
get you connected to the most appropriate service.
Call 112:
this is the standard European emergency number. Though be
careful, if you are near a land border, for instance in Alsace, a call
to 112 from a mobile phone may get directed to the emergency services
in the neighbouring country.
Before
you travel - health insurance :
Health:
Visitors from European Union countries (i.e. the United
Kingdom, Ireland, etc.) are strongly advised to make sure that they
have health insurance cover
before travelling to France or any other foreign country. For France,
UK visitors should obtain the European
Health Insurance Card (EHIC),
which has replaced the old E 111 form.
The EHIC, which is usually issued for up to
five
years, covers any
medical treatment you may need during your visit to France, as a result
of accident or sickness. The card gives access to treatment by doctors,
dentists, and in public hospitals, or private clinics operating within
the French "sécurité sociale"
(health service) framework. Note
that the EHIC does not normally cover the full cost of medical
treatment in France or other countries; the NHS recommends that all
travellers also take out private health insurance, to cover the
difference.
Visitors
who do not
come from EU countries must take out private health insurance cover.
Finding
a doctor / hospital / ambulance
France has a dense network of medical
practitioners, and there are doctor's surgeries even in very small
towns. Many doctors operate joint practices, though many have their own
private surgeries. To find a doctor, ask any local resident, or find a
chemists and enquire.
The number of hospitals in France is
falling, as
cost-cutting measures are introduced; but it is still possible to find
a hospital with some kind of accident or emergency service in most
medium-sized towns. Look for signs for "Hôpital" or (why use
one
word when two are possible!) "Centre hospitalier". In bigger towns or
cities, look for signs to the CHR (Centre hospitalier
régional)
or CHU (centre hospitalier universitaire).
Home
visits: if the patient is too sick to move, a doctor will
make a home visit. Ask your hotel / campsite / gite owner or neighbour
to call a local medic. The cost is slightly higher than a surgery
visit; payment and refunding are the same as for a surgery visit.
Sunday
and night time calls: in all big towns, and some smaller
ones too, doctors and chemists' remain on duty by rota. Local
gendarmeries (police stations) can usually provide the phone number of
the duty doctor and chemists (médecin de garde, pharmacie de
garde); alternatively, ring round local chemists shops until one
answers. Doctors are often quite happy to do night calls; often these
are done by young doctors, who appreciate the extra payment for
coming out at anti-social hours.
Paperwork,
formalities:
If you visit a doctor, or a hospital, you will be given a signed
"feuille de soins" (a statement of the treatment carried out), and
possibly an "ordonnance" (a prescription). These must be kept
carefully, as you will need to send them in in order to claim
reimbursement. You will need to take the "ordonnance" to a chemists,
where you will have to pay for the items. If you have an EHIC card, you
will be reimbursed later, (see below), and your medicines will probably
end up costing you quite a bit less than they would have cost in the UK.
Doctors
and hospitals: the cost:
The current cost of a standard visit to a GP (general
practitioner) in France is 22 € (Spring 2008) . For
payment
and reimbursement, see below. Visits to specialists and to the hospital
cost more, as do home visits and visits at night and weekends..
Paying,
and getting reimbursed:
The standard principle of the French health service is "pay first,
reclaim, then
get reimbursed"; but for this does not always apply in the event of
hospital treatment.
- Travellers with an EHIC card will be
refunded about
70 per cent of standard doctors' and dentists' fees, and
between 35% and 65% of the cost of most prescribed medicines.
Some common items such as bandages and comfort medicines are refunded
at
the lower rate, or not at all.
- Doctors visits and hospital
out-patient treatment: Unless you are the holder of a French "Carte
Vitale" (available to certain foreign residents) you must pay
for treatment and then claim a
partial refund from the local Health Insurance Office (Caisse
Primaire d'Assurance-Maladie or CPAM) in France. Ask the doctor /
hospital for the address of the local CPAM office. Alternatively, click here
for a list of departmental CPAM's in France.
If you are treated as an
in-patient in an approved hospital (state hospital or recognised
private clinic) and show your EHIC card, the
cost of your stay and treatment will mostly be paid directly by the
CPAM
to the hospital. You will just be billed for the balance, plus the
fixed daily hospital charge ('forfait journalier'); these are
non-refundable under EHIC, which is why it is important to have private
health insurance cover as well.
If you do not have an EHIC card, you will need to pay for your health
care and contact your private insurance for reimbursement. In the event
of hospitalisation, check with your insurer.
Further
information: The CPAM of
the Haute Vienne department, in the west of France, has a
useful website in English, giving full details of procedures, rates,
costs etc.
Useful
words:
Doctor:
un médecin [earn med-sanne]
Emergency: une urgence [oon
oor-jonse]
Medecine: médicament(s)
[may-dee-ca-mon])
Ill, sick: malade [ma-larde]
Chemists : une pharmacie [oon
farm-assee]
I'm very sore here / it hurts here: J'ai très mal ici [zhay
tray mall eesee]
We need to find a doctor urgently. Nous
avons besoin de voir un médecin au plus vite. C'est urgent.
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