Living in the Languedoc:    The Medical System:    Medical Practitioners

General Practicioners You can chose your general doctor (GP) and consult as many as you wish, but you have to pay them for the consultation, and reclaim the cost (as with most medical services in France.) As in the UK, GP's prescribe medicines and advise you on your health

Specialists: Unlike the system in the UK, specialists may be contacted directly by the patient, without a referral from a GP. This means that for exampole you could go directly to a Dermatologist, Ophthalmologist, Gynaecologist, or Psychiatrist You can contact as many specialists as you want, and will almost invariably get an appointment much earlier than you would on the NHS in the UK.

Others Paramedics and other medical professionals such as dentists and midwives (sages-femmes) are not doctors, but their fees are reimbursable by the Sécurité Sociale. They may also be contacted directly. For dental work, routine treatments (such as fillings and scaling) are normally reimbursable. Orthodontics, bridges, and dentures are not, except in the case of children less than 16 years of age.