Poland

See a general practitioner who has a contract with the National Health Fund (Narodowy Fundusz Zdrowia, NFZ). You can ask the NFZ’s regional offices for the contact details of contracted healthcare providers. You can also recognise contracted clinics by the logo featuring the letters NFZ. If needed, you can see a specialist after receiving a referral from a general practitioner. If you need a specialist, you can consult one if you have a general practitioner´s referral.

Exceptions are gynaecologist, obstetricians, dentists, specialists in sexually transmitted diseases (venerologist), oncologists and psychiatrists, whom you can consult without a referral from a general practitioner.

When you show your European Health Insurance Card and ID at the appointment, the treatment is free of charge. General practice clinics are generally open from Monday to Friday, from 8 a.m to 6 p.m. Outside office hours, on weekends and public holidays, 24-hour medical treatment is provided by healthcare providers contracted to the NFZ. Their contact information is available from NFZ´s regional offices, or you can find it using a search engine on the NFZ website (in Polish).

See a dentist who has a contract with the NFZ. Present your European Health Insurance Card at the appointment.

Health insurance covers only a limited range of free dental care. In addition, only certain procedures performed by the dentist and the specific materials used are free of charge for patients. You can obtain a list of free services and materials, as determined by the Ministry of Health, from dentists’ offices. You must pay yourself for any services and materials not included in the list.

A prescription may be issued by a doctor or another healthcare professional authorised to do so.

Medicine prices vary in Poland. You pay a fixed charge for most basic medicines. For other medication, you will be required to pay a variable excess. Some medicines are not eligible for reimbursement at all.

In Poland, prescriptions are always issued electronically. If you do not have a patient account online, you should ask your doctor to print out the e-prescription information form. Present the information form at the pharmacy together with your European Health Insurance Card or another document entitling you to treatment.

In Poland, an e-prescription is valid for 30 days from the date it was issued or from the “valid from” date specified by the doctor. However, the prescription must be picked up within 365 days of the date of issue.

Exceptions to the general period of validity:

• 7 days for antibiotic
• 120 days for immunological medicines
• 30 days for medicines containing narcotic or psychotropic substances

The prescription requires a doctor’s confirmation in order to remain valid for one year. Please note that if your prescription is valid for one year, you must pick up the first supply within 30 days of the prescription being issued. You can buy medicines for up to 120 days’ treatment at a time. 

In Poland, you can also buy medicines with an electronic prescription that your doctor wrote in Finland. The service is only available in some pharmacies in Poland.

You can purchase the medicine from a pharmacy by showing your passport or identity card at the pharmacy. Please note that the use of electronic prescriptions abroad involves some restrictions. Read the entire list of restrictions on the Kanta.fi website. You can claim reimbursement of the medicine you have purchased from Kela afterwards.

In order to obtain hospital treatment, you generally need a doctor´s referral. In emergencies, you can go directly to a hospital´s emergency room (SOR). You will receive treatment free of charge at NFZ´s hospitals when you present your European Health Insurance Card and ID.

You will also receive ambulance transport free of charge with a valid European Health Insurance Card in case of an emergency.

If your illness requires you to use special transport when returning to Finland, you will be liable for the travel costs in their entirety. You are recommended to take out a travel insurance that covers these costs.

Remember to make sure that your patient data is transferred between countries. You can provide those responsible for your follow-up care or your health centre with the patient records concerning the treatment you received abroad. If the patient records need to be translated, you will be responsible for arranging that yourself.

In Poland, the standards for the quality and safety of healthcare and the ethical principles governing the provision of treatment are established by law. The Polish National Health Fund ensures that healthcare service providers in the public system comply with agreements. Comprehensive information about the quality and supervision of healthcare is available on the website of the Polish National Contact Point.

In the event of a treatment injury, the legislation and patient insurance of the country providing the treatment apply. If you are dissatisfied with the care you received, you should first try to resolve the matter directy with the healthcare provider. The Polish National Contact Point can help you find the appropriate authority if you wish to file a complaint.

Poland has a decentralized health system based on mandatory public health insurance. The stewardship, management, and financing of the system are shared between the Ministry of Health, the National Health Fund (Narodowy Fundusz Zdrowia, NFZ) and territorial self-governments.

The NFZ is responsible for financing healthcare services and contract both public and private service providers to organise care. Private service providers can also be accessed through the public system, provided they have a contract with the NFZ.

Private service providers are responsible for the majority of primary and outpantient care. Most inpatient care in hospitals and other institutions is provided by public operators, with the remainder delivered by private providers.