health care in Poland

07.03.06, 12:03
Hi everybody,

I have a question for those who are in Poland for a while. Do you pay for a
private health care or you just use medical services provided by National
Health Fund paid by your employer?

And what kind of tips/advice would you have for those who are considering
coming to Poland with thir families. What should they do and what they should
avoid?

    • hardenfelt Re: health care in Poland 07.03.06, 12:13
      anusial1 wrote:
      > And what kind of tips/advice would you have for those who are considering
      > coming to Poland with thir families. What should they do and what they should
      > avoid?

      Try not to become ill!

      If you do get ill but it’s not serious then pay for a visit with a private
      doctor (it’s not that expensive).

      If you should get a serious illness, then leave the country or ask David to
      pray for you.
      • anusial1 Re: health care in Poland 07.03.06, 13:06
        It is easy to say 'try not to be ill'
        what if you need to go to a specialist because of some problems? What is you
        come with children and you need to visit a doctor?
        I understand that you advice to pay some private insurence, right?
        What about english-speaking doctors you can recommend. Or German speaking?
        • ianek70 Re: health care in Poland 07.03.06, 13:30
          anusial1 napisała:

          > It is easy to say 'try not to be ill'
          > what if you need to go to a specialist because of some problems? What is you
          > come with children and you need to visit a doctor?
          > I understand that you advice to pay some private insurence, right?

          I do the same as Hardenfelt.
          I haven't got any insurance, so when I need treatment I either pay 20 or 30 zl
          to see a private doctor, or if it's a minor emergency I go through the public
          system. A few things are free for EU citizens (although obviously Poles in the
          UK get everything for free) but generally in state hospitals and clinics there
          are various fees, some official, some not.
          If I ever need a serious operation, I'll go back to Scotland for it.
          Because Poles tend to vote for corrupt, useless bastards who waste my taxes on
          pointless crap like invading Iraq and sponsoring the Catholic church, the
          Polish health service has privatised itself.
          Now it's getting to be like in Britain. You can either wait a few weeks or come
          back at five past five today with a big pile of money.
          • anusial1 Re: health care in Poland 07.03.06, 13:55
            what about children? Do you think that you can go for the same option?
            National Health Care + private visits?
            • hardenfelt Re: health care in Poland 07.03.06, 15:08
              Polish specialized doctors with a PhD and several years of experience earn less
              than 2000 zl. if they only have one job. They need to upgrade their knowledge,
              read professional magazines, take part in conferences and things like that –
              which they have to pay for. This means that most of them have additional jobs
              and work at least 70 hours a week. I wouldn’t like to have an operation by a
              doctor who has worked for the last 12 hours.

              It is true that some of them receive bribes, but only if they work in some
              interesting specializations and even here they only get bribes on special
              occasions. A much more common habit is receiving small presents like chocolate,
              whisky or flowers which really doesn’t help a lot when it comes to their
              personal finances.

              The point is, they are all overworked. You will probably meet the same doctor
              in the public health service as in a private clinic. If you pay for the visit
              the waiting time is shorter though and the doctor might spend an extra 5
              minutes on you.

              In Warszawa and a few other major cities you find exclusive clinics with
              English/ German speaking doctors. They normally charge prices close to London
              level.

              Some doctors speak English/ German (specially the younger ones), but many of
              those with language abilities have chosen to move to England, Germany or
              Scandinavia.

              I few years ago I looked for a private insurance but couldn’t find anyone with
              a decent cover. If you want a good insurance you will probably have to buy it
              from an international health insurance company. In my case this would cost
              around 400 Euro per month when I investigated it but it depends on your age and
              the amount of people you need to insure.

              What I am trying to say is that the health system in Poland is dysfunctional
              and you should be aware of this if this is something which bothers you. But
              it’s there and you will be able to take your children to doctors and get
              prescriptions. It’s just going to be time-consuming. I think the best thing is
              to forget about private insurances but put money aside for private visits. Look
              around and find a doctor you trust. Then stick to him.
              • usenetposts Re: health care in Poland 08.03.06, 09:37
                Michael Hardenfelt gave you some good advice in this latest post. I can only
                add that when it comes to it, you can always ask in this and other gazeta
                forums if they recommend a doctor. I have a good children's doctor in Warsaw.
                • varsovian Re: health care in Poland 08.03.06, 12:39
                  The Child Health Centre in Warsaw is an absolutely outstanding specialist
                  children's hospital.
                  Looking at it you wouldn't think so. The building looks exactly like the crappy
                  office block at Warsaw West bus station, the canteen is a sorry sight too -
                  chipped cups and plates. But the staff are excellent and the specialist
                  equipment is good quality. Not a penny appears wasted. However, if ever you
                  want to make a donation to charity, you could phone them (or visit in
                  Miedzylesie) and offer them a crate-load of crockery (perhaps with your company
                  logo on ...)
                  When I made a donation of equipment, I was summonsed by my tax office for
                  obvious fiddling!
                • albertodemarinis Re: health care in Poland 08.03.06, 22:42
                  Hi,,

                  sorry, i'm not very active in this forum. I read that you know a good
                  children's doctor here in warsaw. Well i have a 7 mounths child and
                  i'm looking for a good doctor for my son, could u give me the address
                  of your doctor
                  thank's
                  Alberto
                  • usenetposts Re: health care in Poland 08.03.06, 23:08
                    albertodemarinis napisał:

                    > Hi,,
                    >
                    > sorry, i'm not very active in this forum. I read that you know a good
                    > children's doctor here in warsaw. Well i have a 7 mounths child and
                    > i'm looking for a good doctor for my son, could u give me the address
                    > of your doctor
                    > thank's
                    > Alberto

                    Certainly.

                    His name is Dr Kowalczuk and he is on Marokanska 10B in Saska Kepa. I'll get
                    his mobile number for you when I get back to Warsaw as I'm away on business at
                    the moment.

                    He is not the cheapest, but is always able to come to you and he has a sensible
                    approach. He is also good at getting hold of medicines - we all got flu vax
                    this year despite how difficult they were to come by.
                    • albertodemarinis Re: health care in Poland 08.03.06, 23:16
                      Thank you very much!!

                      Best regards
                      Alberto
                      • usenetposts Re: health care in Poland 08.03.06, 23:18
                        Pleasure.
            • magdalena18 Re: health care in Poland 09.03.06, 16:45
              Also Mother and Child Institute at Kasprzaka St in Warsaw has great specialists.
              Besides there are various private health centers you or your company pay certain
              amount monthly and you get access to the majority of health services,( depends
              on the option you choose)including an unlimited no of home visits of your
              pediatrician or GP with no extra charge - which is v. helpful when you have
              children. Their services are quite ok.Great when compared to National Health
              Care. I have been the patient of Enelmed for quite a long time and I'm satisfied
              with their services. There are also Medicover, LIM Medical Center LUXMed. Some
              of them have also hospitals and they arrange everything for you.
              • jaciapa Re: health care in Poland 09.03.06, 19:52
                Hi Everyone,

                Very interesting topic & knowledgeable contributors. But wow, what a sorry state
                of affairs, ie Polish national health service(ie non-private). I note in
                particular : for minor ailments - go private. For anything more serious - go
                back to your own country. I know of someone who actually does this - though it's
                a pain in the neck for her UK living son-in-law, as it is on him that she
                descends each time !!

                On a serious note. Is it really the route to go ? Pay for minor, flee for major.

                My position is that I'm from the UK. Have been over here for 18m & have not
                needed, touch wood, any medical attention. I am planning to settle here for good
                & need to take this subject on board. It's just me & my Polish lady partner.
                Hence no need to worry about offsprings.

                I will continue to have a pad in the UK. Hence no problems with staying over.

                Also can anyone clarify what UK form E111 actually covers in Poland? I
                appreciate it's fairly basic - but that's all I could ascertain. More
                importantly what is excluded ?

                Regards to all,

                Janek





                • usenetposts Re: health care in Poland 10.03.06, 00:59
                  The E111 is only 6 months. It's not for people working andresiding in another
                  EU country - they are supposed to pay social insurance and take social benefits
                  where they are.
                  • jaciapa Re: health care in Poland 10.03.06, 01:20
                    Hi uncle Davey,

                    Point taken.

                    I've taken early retirement on a company pension. I do not work in Poland. I
                    have no NI deductions (not payable on a pension)in the UK, just tax. Can you
                    clarify what social insce I may need to pay in Poland. If not am I not entitled
                    to any social benefits, ie medical care ?

                    I appreciate I'm pushing my luck asking you these Qs. Could you perhaps point me
                    in the right direction ?

                    Re E111, I gather (have found out since my last e-mail) that it's now been
                    replaced wef 1.1.2006 (I think) with a "Euro health insurance card". I'm off to
                    the UK shortly & will find out what it's all about.

                    Regards,

                    Janek
                    • hardenfelt Re: health care in Poland 10.03.06, 06:58
                      jaciapa wrote:
                      Can you
                      > clarify what social insce I may need to pay in Poland.

                      If you live in Poland and you are financially self-supporting you can pay to be
                      covered by the public health care system. This cost around 200 zl. a month.
                      This is not an obligation though.

                      If you live in Poland and don’t have a health insurance you will be accepted to
                      hospitals in case of an emergency or a life-threatening disease. In that case
                      you will receive an invoice afterwards.

                      As far as I remember there are bilateral agreements with some countries about
                      free treatment in some particular cases. I think the UK might be included but
                      I’m not sure about it.
                      • varsovian Re: health care in Poland 10.03.06, 15:24
                        I think the UK does have a bilateral treaty (1970?) - I can imagine it being
                        honoured by a Polish hospital though.
                        • jaciapa Re: health care in Poland 10.03.06, 15:47
                          Thank you all for helpful info & advice.

                          Regards, Janek
                    • usenetposts Re: health care in Poland 11.03.06, 13:38
                      Janek, I don't know how it works for pensioners, but I think if you ring the
                      DHSS in Newcastle (say just in case that you are ringing for a friend and don't
                      give details - that is good practice whenever trying to get advice out of
                      government departments anywhere) then they ought to tell you, and if they don't
                      then ringing the local Citizens' Advice Bureau to your UK address ought to help.
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