Nemes János: Healing Budapest - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1993)
If you Fall Ill
If you fall ill Hungary’s health care system, like everything in the country is changing. The state monopoly has disappeared, the free and the comprehensive health care system is breaking up. Patients are learning new terms: privatization, health insurance, insurance cards, private clinics and out-patient departments. We would therefore like to give some guidelines to this situation. On arrival If you are so unfortunate as to have an accident on arrival, you may use the twenty-four hour medical service at the two airports (Ferihegy I and 11) and the three central stations (Eastern, Western, Southern), where an ambulance may be called if necessary. Hotel guests Not only thermal hotels have their own doctors, but the major hotels as well. At best, doctors have a paramedical assistant on duty as well. If, however the hotel has no doctor, the local practitioner on duty can be called on request, at a charge. If you are not staying in a hotel it is easiest to turn to the local doctor or surgery. Most of the regional G.Ps are specialists in internal diseases. In more sever cases they will go out to patients and they are entitled to send patients to specialists’ clinics (ENT, cardiology, urology, etc.). General practitioners and private clinics licensed to home practice are listed in the telephone directory. The organization of medical care for children is exemplary. It is distinctly separated from adult health care. Only certificated doctors with hospital experience may work as paediatricians. They are assisted by qualified district nurses and assistants. Foreigners may also use the regional network of children’s clinics, at a charge, of course. Doctors may be called out to patients if justified. Night Duty At night (from 8 pm to 8 am) and on holidays patients may go to the out-patient clinics on duty-districts share them. The doctors may be called, as well. Here again, children’s and adults’ clinics on duty are separate. 19
