Family doctor (GP)
Why have one
- General and preventive medical follow-up
- Often cheaper with family-doctor insurance model (-10–15% on LAMal premium)
- Care coordination (specialist referrals)
- First contact for common issues
How to find one
- Doctena.ch, Onedoc, Medicosearch: online booking platforms
- FMH directory (medfmh.ch): all recognised doctors
- Word of mouth in your neighbourhood or via the pharmacy
- Commune website: list of GPs
Difficulty
Switzerland has a GP shortage, especially in rural areas and outside city centres. Many no longer take new patients. Plan ahead and call 3–5 practices to find availability.
Dentist
Not covered by basic LAMal (except accident or serious illness). Dental care is on you or covered by complementary insurance.
Indicative prices (without complementary insurance)
- Consultation, check-up: CHF 100–180
- Scaling: CHF 150–300
- Simple filling: CHF 200–450
- Composite filling: CHF 300–600
- Simple extraction: CHF 200–400
- Crown: CHF 1,500–3,500
- Implant: CHF 3,500–6,000+
- Child orthodontics: CHF 8,000–18,000 over 2–3 yrs
Finding a dentist
- SSO (Swiss Dental Society): sso.ch directory
- Doctena, Medicosearch: online booking
- Universities: university clinics (UNIGE, UNIBE) offer reduced-price care
Complementary dental insurance
- CHF 30–90/month by cover
- Reimburses 50–90% of costs depending on plan
- Watch for waiting periods (often 12 months before full reimbursement)
Specialists
Access
- With family-doctor insurance: GP referral required
- With free-choice insurance: direct specialist access
- Tariffs: reimbursed 90% by LAMal after deductible and co-payment
Platforms for specialists
- Doctena.ch: by specialty (cardiology, dermatology, gynae, ophth, ENT, psychiatry, etc.)
- Onedoc: practical in French-speaking Switzerland
- Medicosearch: German-speaking
- FMH directory: all certified specialists
Waiting times
Reality: in Switzerland, specialist waits can be long:
- Dermatology, ophthalmology: 2–6 months
- Psychiatry: 3–12 months
- Cardiology, gastro: 1–4 months
- Gynae: 2–8 weeks
- Emergencies: immediate (see next section)
Tip: call several practices, cancellations are frequent. Practices in private clinics (Hirslanden, Genolier, La Tour) sometimes have shorter waits.
Emergencies
Medical emergencies
- 144: ambulance, life-threatening
- 117: police
- 118: fire brigade
- 145: poison centre
- 0800 33 144: on-call doctors / SOS doctor
- Hospitals: HUG (Geneva), CHUV (Lausanne), Inselspital (Bern), USZ/USB (Zurich/Basel), EOC (Ticino)
Walk-in clinics (non-life-threatening)
- MyPermanence: Geneva, no appointment, open late
- Eaux-Vives, Onex permanences (GE)
- CFF station permanences in large cities
On-call pharmacy
- 24/7 by rotation
- Surcharge nights and weekends
- List on sosmedecins.ch, apothecareplus, or local pharmacy
Tips
- Choose a GP on arrival: shortage can stretch lead times
- Keep all receipts: for insurance reimbursement
- Telemedicine: Medi24, Medgate, Sanitas Pulse — included in some LAMal plans
- With complementary insurance, check which doctors/clinics are contracted
- Paediatrician: find one before birth/arrival of children; acute shortage
- Foreign doctors: MEBEKO recognition required, see dedicated article
