Hello all- well we had two days of lovely Tinos and now I'm on day 5 of a miserable prayer inducing stomach illness. I'm stuck on Tinos until the 12:30 ferry, but headed straight to a hospital in Athens. Does anyone have a recommendation for one that is trustworthy, safe and accepts patients at any hour? I have emergency health services through work ans they cover Diagnostic and Therapeutic Center Hygeia SA. The reviews look iffy, but I also just need medical help ASAP, so I don't really care at this point as long as it's referred. TY!
Posted by
France Southwest
2267 posts
Sorry for what is happening to you
The place where you can find medical assistance in Tinos is the medical center located on Mark Krikeli street, 3 minutes from the port by car.
In Athens there is a list of the US Embassy available here:
https://gr.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/doctors/
By the way, I'm curious to know where you ate just before having this problem.
Posted by
11551 posts
I am so sorry to hear about your situation. When I had an accident in Greece I asked for a private hospital as our Greek friends recommended them over public/government hospitals. However when you need an ER you go to the closest National Hospital! I was given good care and had follow up visits all over Greece, also at National hospitals.
I was barely charged anything. The surgeon who repaired my arm did speak English, others not so much.
As far as a referral, I walked into the hospital and was directed to the ER. I was given paperwork at the end of my ER visit to use for a claim back in the US. Total of a hour and a half, stitching me up,3€. Anitibiotic was more. I did not need a diagnosis as it was obvious looking at torn up
arm. I never paid anything for follow up care.
Posted by
Washington DC
27903 posts
That sounds like what I experienced in Ljubljana back in 2015. It's not a fun way to spend a chunk of your vacation. However, by the time I went to a clinic (which seemed to function as a sort of emergency room) on Day 5, my symptoms were abating, so I hope by now you are feeling somewhat better. I did need IV fluids and (I think) potassium, though I had been trying to stay hydrated.
I believe you'll find many, many Greek doctors speak English, having trained somewhere like the UK or the US. My experience while my mother was hospitalized in Greece in the mid-1990s was that the typical ward nurses provided a lower level of care than you'd find in the US, but my assumption is that at most you probably just need lab work to figure out what antibiotic you will need and a bottle of suitable pills rather than ongoing care. That's good, because the ward experience in a Greek public hospital isn't really something you want to find out about first-hand; my mother's doctor recommended that we hire a private-duty nurse to stay with her at night. There were no beds available in private hospitals at the time.
I hope we hear from you tomorrow with "I'm on the mend" news.
Posted by
Southeastern US
2594 posts
OP I hope you're doing ok.