Health care information for exchange students
On this page, you can find basic information about health care in Sweden that could be relevant for exchange students. Visit the website 1177.se for more detailed information about Swedish health care.
Acute emergencies
Call 112 when you experience an acute emergency that poses an immediate risk to health, life, or property. The number connects you to the police, the fire department, social emergency services, on-call priest, poison information, air rescue services and mountain rescue services.
If you fall ill
You can call the medical advice number (Sjukvårdsrådgivningen) 1177 for health care advice over the phone twenty-four hours a day, year-round. A nurse will answer your questions, determine the need for further care and recommend which, if any, health care agency you should visit.
Telephone: +46 771 11 77 00.
Cost
You will have to pay the total cost if you do not have a Swedish personal identity number. This applies to emergency, necessary, and planned care. A visit to a general practitioner at a local healthcare centre can cost several thousand SEK. Therefore it is important that you have full insurance before coming to Sweden. For more information regarding insurance please refer to the page about insurance for exchange students.
Medication
Prescriptions and over-the-counter medications are available at local pharmacies. Over-the-counter medicine can also be found at larger grocery stores near the cashiers. Pharmacies are open during normal shopping hours, although some may be closed on weekends. The pharmacy at the University hospital is open after hours.
If you use prescription medicine, make sure to look over your needs well in advance of travelling to Sweden. Some medicines may not be available in Sweden, although they have been prescribed to you in your home country. For example, stricter rules apply to medicinal products containing narcotic or doping substances. Note that the use of antibiotics is strictly monitored in Sweden.
We recommend that you bring any medication you use when you travel to Sweden. You can read more about travelling with medicines on the Swedish Medical Products Agency's website.
Dental care
Dental care is separated from other medical care in Sweden, and you pay a much higher proportion of your dental check-ups and treatments yourself.
If you are a student from a country in Scandinavia or the EU, or from Liechtenstein or Switzerland, you are entitled to emergency dental care at the same cost as those who are insured in Sweden, if you bring your European Health Insurance Card.
Non-EU/EEA students are covered by the Student IN insurance. The insurance includes coverage for emergency dental care, but compensation is limited.
Student Health Services
The Student Health Services are here to help you with issues associated with life as a student. You can contact them with questions regarding subjects such as lifestyle, mental health, and stress management. The trained health care staff can help you by offering:
- advice by phone
- brief individual counselling in Uppsala and Visby
- courses and lectures on student-relevant topics
- a light room
Everything is free of charge for Uppsala University students, including exchange students.