Seeing a doctor in China may somewhat different from that in your own county. Then what you should know when you need medical services in China? The following aspects are what you won’t ignore.

1. The Emergency Call Number
The first thing you should know about local medical services is the emergency call number. You can dial 120 from anywhere. An ambulance will normally arrive in a few minutes and take you to one of the city emergency centers or the particular hospital you've asked for. There may be one named on your medical insurance.

2. Service Charge
You will be charged for the service but the price fare won't be high. Much depends on the emergency treatment you've received and the distance from the emergency center to the point you were picked up.

3. Hospitals for Expats
Big cities in China like Beijing and Shanghai have hospitals, clinics and dentists established for foreigners. Many of them are a part of local hospitals. Some can offer a full range of medical services such as operations, check-ups and in-patient facilities while other smaller clinics may simply be able to diagnose the symptoms of minor ailments.

4. Medicine from Drugstore or Hospital Pharmacies
Your doctor may give you a prescription for you to buy medicine in a drugstore. Go to a drugstore, show the chemist the prescription and you'll be given what you need. Medicines in independent drugstores are often cheaper than those in hospital pharmacies.

Medicines sold in Chinese drugstores may not have their instructions written in English. So you should get instructions from your doctor.

You can also get the medicine from pharmacies in hospitals, but most of the expats hospitals don't have their own pharmacies. Some expats hospitals also have vaccination services; you may get such kind of information from their Websites.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/13/2012 12:17AM by Olive.

Thanks Mate

Very clear explainations. Thanks.

helpful information'thanks.