Resources for Staying Safe and Informed

You can either call the office secretary, or for a large number of doctors, laboratories and specialists, you may book medical appointments directly online through Doctolib - https://www.doctolib.fr/ 

To note, there are different categories for prices for medical services - ‘conventionné’ indicates the fee is fixed by the social security, ‘non conventionné’ means the fees are set by the doctor, so this, in many cases, can be much higher.  

Your coverage or reimbursement of medical costs may be in part, or all, covered by French social security (CPAM - carte vitale), your top-up insurance (mutuelle) or a third party insurance provider. Save all of your medical documents and feuilles de soins to submit to your healthcare insurance.

You may consult a list of English speaking medical professionals collated by members of our community and ISP nursing staff here.  To note, ISP does not formally endorse any particular medical professional on this list or otherwise, and you will want to make your own choices as to your family health needs.  

You can also search for English-speaking professionals through the Doctolib site by filtering your search results for ‘langues parlées’, then select English.

Doctolib has a search filter that allows you to search for available appointments the same day, or within 3 days.  Your general practitioner may also be able to squeeze you in for an urgent appointment if you call the secretary and explain your situation.

There is a 24-hour visiting doctor appointment possibility through the SOS Medecins service to come to your home - you can call 3624 or 01 47 07 77 77  to check availability and book directly (operators speak English) - https://www.sosmedecins.fr/en/

Please dial ‘15’ - SAMU - they have medical professionals on the line who can help orientate your call and situation (English speaking available), including ambulance and hospital transport, if necessary.

• NB - Dialing the ‘112’ (European emergency health care number) will direct you to the ‘15’ here in France.

For all urgent care (perilous accident or situation requiring urgent arrival) please call ‘18’ - Fire Brigade (‘Sapeurs Pompiers’).  They also deal with medical emergencies and should be the first port of call in life-threatening situations.  Unlike the ‘15’, which can be called for advice, this number should only be used in emergency situations.

For dental emergencies on Sunday, there is an area dentist on call - if you do not know, you can call the police station ‘17’ or SAMU ‘15’ to find out this information.

Summary information here - https://www.gouvernement.fr/en/the-numbers-to-know-in-an-emergency-0

France has numerous options for COVID testing and these include:

• Antigenic PCR tests - available in most pharmacies without appointment. Results in 15 minutes.

• PCR laboratory tests - available in numerous laboratoires, many of which can be booked online through Doctolib (search for ‘Laboratoire de biologie médicale’). You can then filter by the type of test needed (dépistage PCR or dépistage antigénique).

• COVID self tests - for sale in many pharmacies. In the event the test is positive you need to have a laboratory PCR or antigenic test to confirm and should isolate yourself immediately pending results.

For young children, some laboratories will use a saliva test instead of the nasal test. You can call the lab to ask about this availability

COVID tests do not require a prescription and are currently free of charge for French residents who have a healthcare card (Carte Vitale) when accompanied with a doctor prescription or for certain cases (e.g. when someone is a close contact case).

Since 7 July 2021, tourists in France are charged :

• €44 for PCR tests;

• €25 for the rapid result antigen test; 

In all cases, the cost for a test is capped as follows:

• €54 for PCR tests;

• €38 for the rapid result antigen test; 

• €6 for home-testing kits

Currently, all children 5 years old and older and all adults may be vaccinated. France offers Pfizer, Moderna, Janssen and AstraZeneca (for 55 years old and over).  

You can book an appointment in Doctolib (free with French health card). You do not have to book an appointment in the arrondissement where you live and can also search based on second dose only, or booster or single dose (for those who have laboratory confirmation of a positive COVID result).