BlueScottyGirl

I've been in the republic now for about eight months, thankfully me and mine are not the sickly sort but I think now I really need to get to grips with the health service (??) here.

I have VHI Insurance which pays back some of our costs, so understand that things work in a similar way to the US?

I also understand that we can see any doctor we please, even from visit to visit...so what happens to our medical records still sitting in the UK? My daughters school raised an eyebrow when I said we haven't got a doctor yet.

I understand too that my children recieve a dental check every couple of years at school

Now, what I DON'T understand is. Should the children require dental care, do I have to pay for this? (I know if I want them to have the two check ups a year they're used to I have to go private).

How come we were referred to a Health Centre that treats my daughter for free, when my husbands collegues say similar treatment for them in DUblin is costing hundreds? We just turned up for the appointment arranged from the UK.

If my kids get sick during the night...who can I call? Do I have to pay for the children to see a doctor and if we turn up at A and E, will we get a bill before they will treat us?

We live in Wexford, my kids go to school in Wicklow, does that have a bearing on anything?

That'll do for starters! *winks*

tucs

Oh dear pity you didnt do your homework before you came over.
Healthcare is expensive here alright.
If you see a doctor keep your receipt and submit these at the end of year for a tax refund.
As for the dentist, kids get a check up through the school but any other work you will have to pay for.
If the kids get sick durind the night then best to take them to A+E becasue the doctor will only send you there anyway. Again keep the receipts for end of year tax returns.

Batty

Hiya BSG. I don't know what it's called in Wexford but in Carlow and Laois there is something called CareDoc. It's an out of hours number that you call and first a nurse will call you back to see if she can help. If not, she will tell you which doctor is on call. If you DO need to go to A&E get the nurse to call ahead for you. This will mean you don't have to pay a charge there. My MIL was over with us at Christmas and fell and broke a finger. That was exactly the process. If we'd just gone on to A&E ourselves she'd have had to pay a charge (I don't know what it is). Obviously, if it's an emergency then you won't be worrying about a charge but just a tip in case it comes in handy. Also, being in Gorey there will be a few doctors; check around and see what they charge before signing up with one. Some are more expensive than others and if you have to attend out of hours expect to pay an extra €20 at least. The good thing about the health system is that because people have to pay for it, it doesn't get abused so much, so you do get an appointment on the day.

On the dental care. It's my understanding that children can get free dental work done up to age 16. The problem is the waiting lists are so long people end up going private. Also, I don't think it covers orthodentistry (sp), only basic extractions and fillings etc.

When you're totting up your medical bills for your tax refund (20%) don't forget your waste charges too. You just have to ring up the company that collects your waste and ask them for a form to reclaim your tax. We used to pay €300 a year so 20% of that was a nice little bonus. There's lots of stuff you can claim for so have a look on the Revenue website www.revenue.ie for a list.
Are you all set for Christmas? It's 23 degrees here today and I just can't get my head around the fact that it's only 5 weeks to Christmas. Seems very odd altogether LOL

BlueScottyGirl

OOhhh, did I sound like I was panicking? I didn't do my homework before we came for two reasons, one: it wouldn't have affected our decision and two: we enjoy good health so I knew I had the luxury of time to find everything out when I got here. I don't feel bad that I didn't check it all out before coming over, all I did was ensure the quality of care was as good (bad!) as the UK.

Thanks for that *smiles*

BlueScottyGirl

Ah yes, we have a Caredoc, I see the sign when I go to the health centre...I actually thought it was Irish for "Hospital *blush*

My daughter has a brace, it was fitted in the UK so when we moved, her consultant reffered us to somewhere in Wexford town, given our Irish adress I think they then referred us up somewhere local. It's a health centre and she's been three or four times now, but we've never had a bill. It was on this matter that my husbands colleagues were confused and slightly brassed off because they would have had to pay a lot for this treatment. We don't have a medical card or anything like that. I do remember however calling the centre for directions and asking them if there was a charge, the lady said no, because my daughter was a child...so I take it this is a local thing?

I didn't know we could claim a tax refund on medical bills? does that include prescription charges? Thanks for the reminder too about the refuse, I knew about that but had forgotten. I have to claim my rent allowance on the tax too, haven't got to doing that yet.

I am nowhere NEAR set for christmas!! even if the weather is, it's got a bit frosty here in the mornings just recently. I did a bit of shopping and I've started doing the deep clean on the house but other than that.......I think it's going to jump out and surprise me *L*

Thanks for the advice, I feel such a numpty really. I was talking to someone last night and saying that every time I go to do something, it takes three times as long because I need to find out how it's done HERE (not complaining, just pointing it out)...have you ever tried registering a .ie domain???? *rhe*

But, you know?...I wouldn't want to be living anywhere else!

Batty

Good on ya! Don't worry about feeling like a numpty - I think it must be par for the course when you move to a new country. Over here you buy Council rubbish bags and just put them out to be collected. Well yesterday we put three out, in a wheelie bin, with the lid open so they could see them. We thought it would be a good way of ensuring they didn't get torn open during the night. Well, you're obviously not supposed to do that because they didn't take the bloody things! So now we've got three bags of rubbish and heat!

For the prescription charges - just go into your chemist and ask them for a printout of what you've got during the year. Up to 31 December. They'll give you a form to fill in as well. Do you have the family prescription card? I can't remember what exactly it's called but once you have it you don't have to pay more than €72 in any one month for prescriptions. Mostly you probably wouldn't get any benefit from it but if more than one of you are sick at the same time that's the amount you would pay. We actually got quite a bit of use from it because Mike had an ongoing prescription that cost €42 a month so if I needed anything that cost more than €30 that's all I paid.

Also, did you claim your tax back from the UK? A company called Taxback.com will do it for you if you don't want the hassle of doing it yourself - they just charge a small commission. They did mine for me from the UK and now they're doing it in Ireland. I know I could do it myself but it's easier to get them to do it.

Hope all that helps.