When You Need a Doctor

While you're traveling abroad

If you’ve ever moved within the same country (or state), you know that it takes time to find a new doctor (not to mention dentist, hairdresser, etc.). Well, when you travel internationally full-time, it can be challenging to figure out where to go and who to see if you need medical care! Obviously, an emergency is an emergency, but for more ordinary issues, what to do? I wouldn’t say we have extensive experience with this (knock on wood), but we’ve now had several instances now where we’ve needed to be seen by a medical professional.

Japan (early February)

With days to go before we flew back to the US for our two-week layover, Natasha was complaining of skin issues that were different and more exacerbated than the eczema flares she sometimes gets. Since we no longer have full medical insurance in the US, I didn’t want to wait for her to be seen there because I knew the cost would be high. (Our travel insurance will ultimately provide reimbursement, but I didn’t want to take any chances.) So I asked in the Kyoto expat group for a recommendation of an English-speaking doctor that could see us on short notice. I got several and, on a Saturday morning, we walked to a clinic that was about 15 minutes away.

Turns out, clinics like the one we visited in Japan don’t take appointments; they operate on a first-come, first served basis, so they invited us to take a seat and apologized for the wait, as it was maybe going to take 30-45 minutes. I just smiled and said no problem. I mean, I’ve waited longer than that to see a doctor in the US with an appointment! They also said the visit would cost the equivalent of USD$50, plus any prescriptions that might be needed. In my head I thought, That’s it?! What a bargain.

The catch was that I needed to pay in cash, so they directed us to a nearby convenience store where I could get some Yen. I didn’t need to worry about losing my place in line. When we got back, we simply took a seat in the waiting area next to others. It wasn’t a big clinic and so wasn’t a big waiting area, but it felt comfortable. We played some games on our phone to pass the time.

Once we were called back, our visit with the doctor was fairly similar to a consult in the US. It wasn’t in depth and didn’t take more than 10-15 minutes, but it got to the heart of the issue. The doctor prescribed some ointment and antihistamines, which they prepared for us at the clinic so we didn’t have to go to a separate pharmacy (awesome!). They even portioned out exactly how much Natasha needed and only charged us for that amount. The entire visit (consult + meds) was about USD$68. We didn’t bother seeking reimbursement from our travel insurance. Overall, we would give the experience two thumbs up. Here’s my quick summary walking back to the hotel.

Ah, autocorrect, LOL

Argentina (end of March)

We visited the dentist.

Albania (April)

Shelby and I visited the dentist again. (Why go once when you can go twice? LOL.)

Also, Natasha was dealing with some additional skin issues by the time we got to Albania so, once again, I went to the local expat group and searched for recommendations for dermatologists. There was a clear frontrunner; the tricky part was contacting the clinic. Many businesses have numbers that are on WhatsApp and it makes it easy for me to message them. This clinic’s number was not on WhatsApp, but I found a separate number listed in the expat chat and gave it a try. Success. (I only have an eSIM with data so can’t make locals calls; because so many businesses where we’ve traveled have also been on WhatsApp, though, this mostly hasn’t been an issue.)

Getting to the dermatology clinic was a bit of an adventure. We walked across town to get there, thinking it was in the mall (which is how it appeared online). However, it was not in the mall but, rather, beside the mall through what I would call a secret side entrance. I say that because the entrance wasn’t labeled at all and someone had to come down and get us. We then ended up sitting in the waiting room for a bit because apparently they were squeezing us in; fine by me. We just needed to be seen!

Similar to the appointment in Japan, the consult itself didn’t last long but was efficient and to the point. The doctor wrote out four prescriptions: Two for N’s eczema and two for a separate skin issue. We paid for the visit in cash: ~USD$30 (3000 lek) and were on our way.

I took a separate trip to the pharmacy the next day to get everything filled. Fortunately, the woman there spoke English and getting everything was easy. Total cost? About US$60. So all in we spent ~US$90 for Natasha to be seen and get some meds. It was pricer than the visit in Japan, but she also needed more prescriptions this time. The experience was a good one overall and her skin issues greatly improved within a couple of weeks.

Norway (mid-May)

Towards the end of our stay in Albania, I noticed a bump forming on my left eyelid. I didn’t think much of it until Shelby pointed it out. She used Dr. Google and told me it was a stye and that I should use a warm compress on it. It started getting worse day by day but I figured it would eventually get better on its own and, if not, I’d deal with it in Norway. Well, a couple of days into our stay in Norway I woke up looking like this:

Yikes!

Yeah, so that was problematic. Clearly things were not getting better on their own and I needed a doctor. I messaged our AirBNB host for suggestions. She pointed me to what looked to be either an emergency room or urgent care; I wasn’t sure which. Theoretically I could’ve put my name in online to hold my place, only the website was in Norwegian and I couldn’t figure out how to translate all of it. Since I didn’t have an “urgent” issue (relatively speaking) and didn’t want to sit for hours (potentially), I opted for a virtual visit via Air Doctor. I had learned about this service while researching options for Natasha in Japan and it seemed like a good route for me before heading off to a hospital.

I was able to get a consult within 90 minutes with a doctor that had prescribing capability in Norway. I uploaded the photos above and hoped he’d be able to help. He took a look and said it was blepharocongantivitis. (Say that three times fast—or even once!) He said to apply a warm water compress four times a day and prescribed an ointment to also apply four times a day. When I told Shelby she laughed about the warm compress. “I told you so” may have slipped from her lips. I paid €65 (USD$70) for the medical consult (none to Shelby, LOL.)

Fortunately, there’s a pharmacy at the shopping center within walking distance of where we were staying, so I had the doctor call the prescription in there. I walked over a few hours later and picked it up. I had to take a number when I first walked in and then once it was called I went to to corresponding window and the tech assisted me in perfect English. I paid about USD$20 for the ointment. Fortunately, things improved within a handful of days. Whether the ointment helped, I’ll never know, but I did use it and will take it with me in case I need it again. (Here’s hoping not!)

What experiences do you have with going to a medical professional outside of your home country? How was the service? The cost? In hindsight, was it a good decision or do you wish you would’ve taken a different approach? Have you sought reimbursement through your insurance?