Tips for travelling abroad for treatment

Each country provides healthcare services in accordance with its own legislation. Treatment methods vary between countries, so your treatment may differ from the treatment you would receive in Finland.

You can also receive treatment abroad that is not available in Finland, meaning that it is not included in the range of healthcare services in Finland. Healthcare providers abroad may also offer treatment that is classified as experimental or non-medical in Finland. Kela does not usually reimburse the costs of such treatment.

However, the healthcare professional treating you, such as a doctor, always decides what treatment you can receive.

 Kela does not reimburse the costs of treatment that is

• experimental,
• non-medical or
• not included in the service choices of Finland’s public healthcare system.

However, a wellbeing services county may purchase treatment abroad for a patient or refer a patient abroad for treatment that is not provided in Finland, such as treatment for a rare disease.

• Check in advance whether a doctor’s referral is required for treatment and whether a referral issued in Finland will be accepted.
• Also check whether the referral needs to be translated into another language. You must pay the translation costs yourself.
• A doctor practising in Finland is usually unable to send a referral directly to a healthcare provider abroad. Make sure that the healthcare provider receives the referral and any other necessary information about your treatment.

Healthcare providers abroad generally cannot be categorised as public or private in the same way as in Finland.

In some countries, a healthcare provider may operate as both a public and a private provider. Ask the healthcare provider whether you will receive treatment as a patient in the country’s public or private healthcare system.

• As far as reimbursement is concerned, it makes no difference whether you use private or public healthcare if you travel for treatment without prior authorisation under the EU Regulation.
• If you travel for treatment with prior authorisation under the EU Regulation, make sure that the healthcare provider accepts the prior authorisation. Prior authorisation is usually accepted only by public healthcare providers.

Before travelling for treatment

• Check whether the healthcare provider is licensed to operate and has insurance covering patient injuries.
• Where possible, also check whether the doctor providing the treatment is authorised to practise and whether any restrictions apply.
• Make sure that you have received sufficient information about the treatment and the risks involved.

You can ask the country’s National Contact Point about requirements concerning the quality of treatment and patient safety. The Contact Point can also advise you if an error occurs during your treatment or you are dissatisfied with the treatment you receive.

The healthcare provider must give you information about

• the different treatment options,
• the quality and safety of the treatment,
• the healthcare provider’s licences and registration and
• the healthcare provider’s liability insurance.

• Finnish patient insurance does not cover patient injuries that occur abroad. You therefore cannot receive compensation from Finland for a patient injury of this kind.
• Discuss the incident with the healthcare provider and claim any compensation from the authorities in the country concerned.
• You can ask the Contact Point in the country where you received treatment for advice if an error occurred during your treatment or if you are seeking compensation for a patient injury.
• However, you can receive treatment in Finland even if the need for treatment arises from a patient injury that occurred abroad.

• The patient records you need usually include a referral or medical statement, a patient or treatment record and laboratory and imaging test results.
• Certain medical terms and codes, such as diagnostic classifications, laboratory codes and other procedure codes, are internationally standardised. It is a good idea to provide them to the healthcare provider.
• You will usually need to have your patient records translated into the language used by the healthcare provider. You will have to pay the translation costs yourself.
• Please bear in mind that your patient records contain your personal data and health information. Make sure that they are transmitted securely to the healthcare provider.

• Patient data recorded in Finland can also be used in the healthcare systems of certain other EU countries, provided you have consented to the sharing of this data in MyKanta.
• Your health information is transmitted abroad in a Patient Summary containing the most important details about your health.
• The summary will allow healthcare professionals to view a limited amount of patient information that has previously been recorded about you in Finnish healthcare and stored in the Kanta services. Such information includes, for example, prescriptions, allergies, diagnoses and medical procedures.

At present, patient data recorded in Finland can only be transmitted to healthcare providers in Estonia, the Netherlands and Spain. Other countries are also gradually being included in the service.

People using healthcare services in Estonia and the Netherlands can ask the healthcare provider whether it is able to retrieve patient data from Finland. In Spain, this service is currently limited to certain areas. You can check the exact areas on the Kanta website.

You have the right to receive your patient records, or a copy of them, in paper or electronic form.

Before travelling for treatment, find out:

• what patient records you can take back to Finland,
• the language in which the records will be provided,
• whether the records will be provided on paper, electronically or in another format, such as on a CD,
• when and how you will receive your patient records and
• whether you have to pay separately for the records.

When you return to Finland, have your medical records translated into Finnish or Swedish if you need them for the Finnish healthcare system. You must pay the translation costs yourself.

It is not yet possible to transfer patient records created abroad to Finnish healthcare systems electronically, so you are responsible for ensuring that your records are transferred. If necessary, ask your wellbeing services county for further information.