Practical Geneva
Practical information for internationals living in Geneva.
- Home
- Practical Geneva
- Emergencies & doctors
Health & Medicine:
Emergencies & doctors
COVID19 information:
- Federal Office of Public Health (OFSP), countries in quarantine .
- State of Geneva .
- Testing center .
- Vaccination for Geneva and the canton of Vaud .
- Mental health: support offers and useful addresses.
- COVID-19 certificate .
- Our Twitter account relays official and practical information.
Geneva benefits from numerous medical specialists, “medical hotlines” and private clinics, where health care is of the highest quality. English is widely spoken in the medical sector and finding an English-speaking doctor in Geneva is not difficult.
The Geneva University Hospitals (HUG) is the largest hospital in Switzerland and the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and the hospitals and clinics of Nyon and the region are all nearby. In addition to providing specialized inpatient and outpatient care, both hospitals are leading medical research centers.
Pharmacies are often conveniently located in every neighborhood and can be a good first stop for helpful advice before a doctor’s appointment.
Pharmacies sell some common medicines on a self-service basis, but for a number of them you must present a prescription issued by a doctor.
- Pharma24 , pharmacy open 24 hours a day near the HUG.
- “PharmaGenève” operates on-call pharmacies on weekends and in the evenings at the airport (Sun Store) and at Cornavin Station (Amavita).
- Medical emergencies in the city of Nyon and duty pharmacies in the canton of Vaud.
For medical care, if your usual doctor is not available, you can consult one of the six public or private emergency medical centers belonging to the Réseau Urgences Genève (RUG).
Doctor’s offices, dental offices and medical-surgical centers are often less crowded than hospital emergency departments and the prices are the same. In addition, medical clinics offer a wide range of prescription care.
- Association des Médecins du Canton de Genève (“FMH” : Fédération des Médecins Suisses).
- Association des Cliniques Privées de Genève.
- Magellan : medical centers present in Geneva and Vaud, various services.
- sso.ch : Société suisse des médecins-dentistes (SSO).
Pediatrics
- Tips for Finding a Pediatrician?
- The HUG’s Pediatric Emergency Department and Outpatient Clinics.
- Speech therapy services for children ages 1 to 4: Your child communicates very little or not at all, has difficulty pronouncing words, and you can’t understand him or her.
Home medical visits in Geneva:
- doctors@home ,
- sos-doctors ,
- GE-MED .
Doctors & clinics in the canton of Vaud:
Good to know
InfoMed: a mobile app from the HUG designed to help users assess their own symptoms and determine whether they need to visit the emergency room (for adults, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, or ophthalmology) or call 144.
onedoc: the app for finding a medical specialty and scheduling an appointment.
planetsanté: a magazine offering practical and reliable medical information.
CAGI members
Emergency numbers
- Emergency Medical Services (ambulance): 144 / Police: 117 / Fire: 118
- Other Useful Emergency Numbers in Switzerland
CAGI services
Contact the CAGI
- Mo-Fr: 9am-12pm / 2pm-4.30pm
Founded by the Swiss Confederation and the Republic and Canton of Geneva, the International Geneva Welcome Centre is the single entry point for the support and integration of employees of International Geneva and their families, NGOs and visiting delegates.