Ciao Elena,
I'm glad to see you're preparing ahead of time - it makes me think you're afraid you will have need of these services while traveling so it is always a good thing to prepare ahead of time, just in case. You might not need these services, but it is good to know. I'll emphasize that it is important you buy travel insurance ahead of time that covers medical costs, considering you're thinking you might need it.
I'm also assuming you're not from the EU, so I'll share some general information of the health system that you need to know about. Do you already have an itinerary planned? that would be an extra step in your planning, but if you already know you're going to be staying in Florence or Siena, you can get lists of local hospitals and English-speaking doctors ahead of time and already have that in your "travel kit" if there is a need.
Key Info
- Emergency care (the ER is called Pronto Soccorso, and the general emergency number is 112) is provided to everyone in Italy, including visitors, regardless of nationality. However, if you are not an EU citizen and don’t have a relevant health agreement, you will generally need to pay for it. Just know that insurance info is NOT the first thing they ask for in an emergency at the ER, that comes later.
- Travel insurance is highly recommended (often required for visas), especially if non-EU. If you are staying for a short time and are non-EU, having medical insurance that covers emergencies, hospitalization, repatriation, etc., is extremely useful.
- Just for general reference, for those that are EU with a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC / GHIC), you have rights to necessary state healthcare on similar terms to Italian residents, including emergency care and sometimes some non-emergency care under similar conditions. It might not cover everything, but it is good practice to travel with it, just in case.
On-call / Non-Emergency Medical Services
Yes, there are services for non-emergency / after-hours / less urgent medical care:
- Guardia Medica (“medical guard”): local service of non-emergency medical help during nights / weekends / holidays in many areas. If you need something that isn’t life-threatening but doctors’ offices are closed, this is the route to take. That is why I was asking for your itinerary, the numbers for these are local and so will be different for each town.
- Private clinics or English-speaking doctors who accept walk-in or can do house calls. In tourist areas / Florence / Siena etc there are several.
- Telehealth / online doctor visits are increasingly common, and some cost very modestly but this is yet not the norm, not even for residents, at least here in Florence.
English-Speaking Doctors
In Tuscany’s larger towns (Florence, Siena, Pisa, Lucca, etc.), yes, you can find English-speaking doctors relatively easily, especially in private clinics, those catering to tourists, or services aimed at expats.
In more rural or smaller towns, less so - sometimes the doctor may speak some English, or you may need someone to translate.
It’s not guaranteed so be prepared.
There are some services / website platforms specifically for English speakers or internationals, which helps. E.g. MedinAction in Florence, Doctors in Italy, etc. You could plan ahead and take a look at those and find lists of doctors where you know you will be staying.
What to Do to Be Prepared
- Always carry travel health insurance that covers medical emergencies, hospitalization, repatriation. Make sure it works in Italy.
- If from EU, bring your EHIC / GHIC card.
- Know where the nearest hospital / emergency care is in the area you’re staying.
- You could also check whether your accommodation or local tourist office has info on English-speaking clinics close to them.
- If you have a non-urgent issue during off hours, check “Guardia Medica” instead of heading to the ER, the Guardia Medica can also give out prescriptions to get medications in pharmacies, if that is what you need.
- Keep receipts and medical reports - these will not only be helpful for insurance claims, they likely will be required.
As far as costs go
If you are non-EU, you’ll likely have to
pay upfront for many services unless you have an international insurance/travel policy. Many clinics ask for payment in full upon treatment. Read up on the procedure for your international/travel insurance in case of emergencies. Some might require that you call them before getting care, depending on the severity. It would be useful to know ahead of time what to do first in an emergency.
For emergencies in public hospitals, there’s less or no upfront cost for critical / life-threatening cases, though
you may still be billed afterward.
Even for residents or EU citizens, some basic/urgent services are free but some specialist visits or diagnostic/imaging exams and medicines might just be cheaper - they require co-payment ("ticket") and luckily these in general are very affordable.
I'll give you some examples of
typical costs for Florence, for reference purposes, for private visits since we live here, other places might be less or more. Some of these we do ourselves privately as the public system takes too long for appointments, especially for dental and optical general care.
- General practitioner / family doctor consult (private) - €50-€150 for a standard in-person visit.
- Specialist consultation (private) - €80-€200+, more for certain specialties or including diagnostics. I had a dental x-ray, it was around €70, a full facial one cost around €150.
- Emergency room visit (public hospital, non-EU visitors) - Can be €50-€200 just for triage / basic treatment, but full treatment costs more depending on severity.
- Hospital stay (private or higher end public) - Hundreds to thousands of euros per night depending on services/room type. Public hospitals tend to be cheaper. If private or “single room / high comfort,” more expensive.
- Dental emergencies - Costs vary a lot: small things like an extraction might be in low hundreds (I paid €350 for a wisdom tooth extraction); more complex work costs more. As I said, these are often private services even locals go to. Many dentists do speak some English in tourist areas.
- Optical emergencies (glasses breakage, eye irritation etc) - Minor treatments might be modest cost; major treatment / surgery more. Emergency eye treatment in hospital more expensive. Often must pay, I pay around €110 for an optical annual exam, but if your glasses break, you can head to an optician store directly where they can just check your eyesight and eyeglasses and get you new ones faster.
** keep in mind that there likely are additional surcharges to do any of these after hours, nights, weekends etc. House calls often cost more, not everyone is willing to make them so you might not find that option available.
I hope these general tips are useful as you plan your trip, if you already have an itinerary planned, feel free to share it and I can help you gather more details to prepare for your visit.
