Health, vaccinations and medical care in Croatia

Cover

• EU, EEA and Swiss visitors: bring the EHIC. UK visitors use the GHIC. Both give you state treatment on the same terms as a Croatian.
• A small participation charge applies to some treatment, as it does for locals.
• Everyone else needs travel insurance. So does anyone planning to use a private clinic.
• Private clinics are everywhere on the coast and will treat you fast for cash. The EHIC is worthless there, so check whether the sign says "dom zdravlja" (state) or a private name.

The island problem

• Small islands have a doctor, not a hospital. Anything serious means a transfer to Split, Zadar, Rijeka or Dubrovnik.
• Transfer can mean a boat or a helicopter, and in bad weather it means waiting.
• This is the argument for real travel insurance in Croatia, more than any disease risk.
• Check your policy covers repatriation, because the coast is a long way from home by ambulance.

Pharmacies

• "Ljekarna" with a green cross. Well stocked, and pharmacists usually speak some English.
• Every larger town has a duty pharmacy open at nights and weekends, posted on the door of the closed ones.
• Bring your own regular medication with the prescription.

Practical risks

• Tap water is safe and good throughout the country, including on the islands.
• The summer sun is fierce and the sea breeze hides it. Croatian July heat regularly passes 35 °C.
• Tick-borne encephalitis exists in inland forested areas, mainly the continental north. Not a coastal concern.
• Sea urchin spines need removing properly. A pharmacy will help.
• Mosquitoes are a nuisance in the Neretva delta and around Zagreb rather than a health risk.
• 112 gets you an ambulance and reaches an English-speaking operator.