Health Croatia

When it comes to health Croatia has some excellent qualified medical staff, but the health care experiences of those who have used the system have vary considerably. From a personal experience, I have been impressed at the free resources on offer in a cash-strapped economy, with the helicopter service to the islands working well, for example. As with everything else in Croatia, the system is very bureaucratic, but the basic health care is of a good standard, although this is not an opinion shared by all.

Rather than writing a few stale paragraphs on health care, I thought it would be more useful to paint a current picture of health care by examining the contributions on a forum post I started on Croatian health care on the expat forum over at Visit Croatia, where the responses were positive and negative, a result of one finding here – that the quality of care, levels of corruption and politeness of staff, vary considerably from hospital to hospital.

A former British resident pointed to the positives – same day appointments and extensive testing, where cost did not seem to be a contributing factor – before launching into the negatives; badly signposted hospitals in Split and the requirement to pay contributions, despite the fact the documentation arrives late, thereby reducing the length of actual annual cover.

She pointed out further negatives: patients are often required to go between different departments to collect documents or stamps; doctors often do not discuss the diagnosis with the patient and are often rude, while others seem unhappy that British nationals can get free treatment in Croatian hospitals under the reciprocal health agreement (of which more below).

The issue of low-level corruption was prevalent in the debate, with claims that treatment was both withheld and accelerated in some cases. As with every highly skilled and poorly paid profession, seeking secondary sources of income is not uncommon, and health care in Croatia is poorly paid, which has led to the emigration of some of its more qualified staff.

Several contributors pointed to cases of misdiagnosis, although for every horror story, there is a positive story. An expat in Varazdin had been forced to encounter the Croatian health system at close quarters, as he was suffering from severe back problems.

For him, treatment was quicker and more personalised that previous experience in the UK, with nurses and doctors operating well in under-funded conditions – the condition of hospital buildings was a common theme in the discussion. There was the usual mix of doctors looking for extra-curricular payments versus those who were not (the ratio was allegedly 50/50).

His experience of private medicine was extremely positive, both in terms of price and delivery, citing an example of a 1500 kuna MRI scan completed within two days. With more money in the wallet, a mix of the public and private worked for him. The overall conclusion was that it was a more satisfactory experience than back home on the NHS, although the one major negative was our old friend, Croatian bureaucracy.

Free Health Care in Croatia for British Citizens

With such varied experiences, it is impossible to give a definite guide to what health care is like in Croatia. The truth is that it varies. Britain and Croatia have a reciprocal health agreement, so in principle, presentation of a British passport or EHIC card (European Health Insurance Card) should be enough to ensure free treatment. In practice…

With local interpretation and paperwork an ever present factor, a definitive answer is impossible to give but the following guidelines seem to be true (Disclaimer – this should not be construed as definitive advice…):

· The bilateral agreement allows for tourists to receive emergency treatment free in Croatia. It is not for general health care, follow-ups or any other non-emergency procedure and certainly not for foreign residents, either temporary or permanent.

· A passport SHOULD be enough for treatment (local interpretations apply).

· UK nationals in Croatia resident can apply for free medical care by registering with the Croatian Health Insurance authorities. It would appear (again, local interpretations) that this is for one year only, after that British residents in Croatia need to purchase local health insurance.

· However, if you are a UK resident but not a UK national, you will need a certificate of insurance from HM Revenue & Customs Centre for Non-residents. More details are available on the NHS website.

· Foreign nationals with a business/work visa are required to purchase Croatian health insurance.

The rules change, local interpretations vary, so let’s hear from you! Please send in whatever information/experiences you have regarding Croatian health care on the form below.

Dental Care in Croatia and Medical Care

The standard dental care in Croatia is of high quality and extremely affordable and there is a nascent business in medical tourism developing from the UK to Croatia. More details and information will appear on this subject shortly.