Health

Emergency call (for acute life-threatening medical conditions): 112
Police: 110
Medical on-call service (at night, on weekends or holidays): 116 117
Dental on-call service (at night, on weekends or holidays): 0511 311031
In principle, however, all hospitals also help in acute emergencies.

If medical help is needed outside the office hours of the family doctor, you can also use the website of the medical on-call service to find the nearest doctor on duty.

In Germany there are on the one hand medical practices for general medicine and on the other hand specialist practices – for example for children or for special topics such as eyes or skin, as well for dentists. You are free to choose your doctor. If you need to seek medical help, you are expected to make an appointment. In case of acute pain, you can of course also go to a physician spontaneously. If you do not yet speak German well, we recommend that you ask a German-speaking person to help you make an appointment, register on site, fill out forms and, if necessary, translate during your consultation with the physician. Not all medical professionals speak fluent English.

Medication is only available in pharmacies in Germany. There are two groups of medicines: Over-the-counter medicines and prescription medicines, for which you need a prescription issued by a doctor. Prescription medications can for example be antibiotics. The cost of the medication is usually covered by health insurance, but there is a co-payment requirement. That means there will be a small copay, at maximum 10 Euros. Medicines for everyday illnesses, such as headache tablets, can be bought at the pharmacy without a prescription. However, you pay for these yourself.
If you need medication at night or on weekends, you can use the pharmacy emergency service. You can also find the schedule for the pharmacy emergency service on the door of every pharmacy.

If you are unable to work, please notify your supervisor immediately of your illness and the expected duration of the illness. By the fourth day of incapacity for work at the latest, the administration responsible for you must have received a certificate of incapacity for work (a medical certificate), which you must obtain from your doctor. Weekend days and public holidays are to be counted in this. This regulation may vary from department to department. Please also ask your supervisor for detailed information.