In today’s article, we will talk about how to register with your therapist, or how to register with your pediatrician in Slovakia. Let’s talk about planned honey. examinations, about what the insurance company does not compensate, about pediatricians and vaccinations, and about emergency ambulance.
HOW TO ACCOUNT FOR A THERAPY IN SLOVAKIA?
And so, if you already have a residence permit / permanent residence permit, you must be insured by a Slovak medical insurance company and be registered with a family doctor, whom you have the right to choose yourself. How to do it?
The first option is a directory of doctors, clinics, hospitals in Slovakia https://www.zzz.sk/zariadenia/slovensko/ordinacia. After you find which doctor you are referring to, feel free to go to his card on the website, where information will be shown where the doctor works, his office hours, work phone number, address, and sometimes reviews. Be sure to pay attention to three things:
- Language spoken by the doctor
- Medical insurance companies with which he collaborates
- Reception of new patients
Be sure to check the account of the insurance company, otherwise you will have to pay for the appointment yourself.
There may be a situation where the therapist or pediatrician is not already recruiting new patients, in this case, continue the search. Referral to narrow specialists is given by a pediatrician or therapist, therefore, standing with them is extremely important. You can narrow specialist choose your own, including from a private clinic. Referral is not necessary to the gynecologist, dentist, psychiatrist. As I wrote above, there is an opportunity to visit private doctors, but the main thing is to make sure that they have an agreement with your insurance company.
The second option for finding your doctor is the database of doctors in your health insurance company. For example, in the UNION insurance company you can download the list of doctors at https://www.union.sk/zdravotne-poistenie-pre-cudzincov
PLANNED MEDICAL INSPECTIONS
An important point is the planned passage of a medical examination.
Insurance companies not only pay for preventive honey. inspections, but also insist on them. The logic is that preventing a disease is much cheaper than curing it. Therefore, in Slovakia you will have to take your health many times more seriously, and love yourself much more than you did in your home country. When visiting a doctor, you must provide a preukaz poistenca or insurance card. The approximate list of preventive medical examinations, which is better to check with your insurance company or therapist (pediatrician) is as follows:
- Examination by a therapist every 2 years from 18 years
- Examination by a pediatrician – there are 9 physical examinations for children under one year old, 1 at 1.5 years old, and 1 examination every 2 years from 3 to 18 years
- Dentist examination once every six months for children under 18 years of age and once a year for adults
- A visit to the gynecologist every year for women from 18 years old, and during pregnancy, monthly
- A visit to the urologist every three years for men after 50 years.
In addition, the insurance company pays for ultrasound tests, visits to specialized specialists who are prescribed by a therapist or pediatrician. What can happen if you ignore these preventative measures? It can happen when you need urgent ambulance, it turns out that you did not undergo scheduled medical examinations, in which case you will independently pay for the assistance provided to you.
WHAT IS NOT COMPENSED BY THE INSURANCE COMPANY?
Let’s take a look at what the insurance company does not compensate:
- Some references to children’s educational institutions
- Unscheduled analyzes, ultrasound
- Most dental services
And you can find out all this information in detail in your insurance company.
If you are temporarily insured by an insurance company from your home country (Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, etc.), but are located in the Slovak Republic and you need medical assistance, you will have to pay for all procedures yourself, but upon returning home, be sure to contact your insurance to receive compensation.
HOW TO REGISTER FOR A PEDIATRIC IN SLOVAKIA?
Find a pediatrician for your children and register with him, follow the same pattern as the therapist. The only difference with the therapist is still the frequency of visits, we turn to pediatricians much more often. I would like to pay special attention to vaccinations. Slovakia has its own vaccination schedule.
Some may coincide with the schedule from your home country, some may not, some are paid, others are not, some are mandatory, others are not. Therefore, do not forget to bring your vaccination card with you. In Slovakia, there are also parents who refuse to vaccinate their children, their number is still less than in Ukraine, for example. And if there is no medical indication not to be vaccinated, then the parents face a fine.
Well, at the end, let’s talk about emergency ambulance. In critical situations, you must call an ambulance, or go to the emergency room (Pohotovost) yourself.
Phone numbers you need to know:
155 – emergency medical care in Slovakia (operators communicate in Slovak)
112 – a single toll-free number for rescue services in the EU. Convenient for a foreigner yet. And the fact that all the operators speak English.
What is better in Slovakia: state health insurance or commercial?
Thus, insuring yourself with a medical insurance company in Slovakia, you get the right to free honey. service as part of your insurance contract. Employees and private entrepreneurs must be insured by a state insurance company. In Slovakia, there are 3 state insurance companies: Vseobecna zdravotna poistovna, Zdravotna poistovna Dovera, Zdravotna poistovna Union.
You can read more about state insurance, its pluses and minuses in our article Medicine and Insurance in Slovakia.
Company directors, reunification wives, and students must be insured with a commercial insurance company. A description and detailed comparison of commercial insurance companies can be found in the article What commercial insurance to choose in Slovakia?
You should also know that you have the right to choose an insurance company, and also have the right to change the insurance company once a year.
I also want to leave you a link to a site (https://www.korona.gov.sk) where you can see all the relevant information regarding the coronavirus in Slovakia. I wish you good health and good luck.
With respect and love,
Tatiana Tkhorivska
