QUICK GUIDE:
Emergency – call 118 or 112.
Non-Urgent Doctor Visit – ask your accommodation or search online for guardia medica turistica.
Basic Medications – head to the farmacia.
You’re enjoying Italy – swimming at your agriturismo, exploring medieval villages like San Gimignano, and eating gelato as you stroll by the Colosseum in Rome.
But, we all know that things happen, and it’s possible your child could get sick while you’re on holiday in Italy. Or, perhaps you’re here in Italy as you read this and need to know what to do – ASAP.
I’m a mamma of three living here in Italy, and I’ve had to deal with plenty of sicknesses and injuries in my own family. I’ve also worked as a guide, and I’ve helped plenty of other families in not-so-great moments. I have been seeing doctors and dealing with illnesses, injuries, and emergencies in Italy since 2003.
Don’t stress – here’s what you need to do if your child gets sick while you’re on vacation in Italy. You have multiple options, depending on the situation. I’ve listed them from most to least urgent. Also, know that the quality of medical care here is excellent – from pharmacies to children’s hospitals.
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor and I am not giving medical advice. I cannot tell you which option to choose for your particular situation. Also, there may be other options available to you (for example, your hotel may have a doctor on call). I want to give this info because worried (and prepared) parents ask me what to do.
Call Emergency Services
If you have a medical emergency, call 118.
You will be asked to describe the situation, and you may need to use Google Translate (or a bystander who speaks English and Italian) to explain the situation.
Emergency services may send an ambulance to take you and your child to the nearest hospital.
Good To Know: We also have the emergency number 112, but it is not active in every region in Italy, so I default to 118. 112 is the general emergency number used throughout the European Union. Dialing 112, you reach a central line that will connect you with the police, the fire department, or emergency medical services. Calling 112 is like calling 911 in the United States or calling 999 in the United Kingdom.
112 EU has an app called ‘112 Where ARE U’ that’s available in the Google app store of the Apple app store. The app automatically sends your location to emergency services when you call. You can also complete a profile that will give emergency services info if you use the app to contact 112.
Go To the Hospital
Another option is to take your child to the hospital, the ospedale. You can ask someone where the hospital is or search on Google Maps.
You may be close to a children’s hospital – an ospedale pediatrico.
When you get to the hospital, you’re looking for pronto soccorso.
You will need to show ID for your child.
You may be seen right away, or you may need to wait for hours. Your child’s emergency will be given a priority, and children are seen in order of priority.
Helpful Tip: If you’ve got two adults, drop your child and one adult off at the door. Sometimes the parking lot is really far away.
Helpful Tip: Make sure you have a contact email and phone number in case you have any follow up questions from your home country doctor or your travel insurance company.
See a Doctor

For non-emergencies, you can see a doctor. It’s a little complicated (just like it is for visitors to the US).
If you need help in the evening, on a weekend, or on a holiday, your best bet is to call the guardia medica, an on-call doctor.
The purpose of the guardia medica is to help Italians who need medical help outside of their doctors’ normal office hours.
As a tourist, you can use it by calling 116 117.
The catch is when you can use this service (evenings, weekends, holidays). For example, in Tuscany the guardia medica is active:
- Weekdays overnight from 20:00-8:00 the next day
- Weekends from 8:00 Saturday through 8:00 Monday
- Weekday holidays from 10:00 the day before the holiday through 8:00 the day after the holiday
What if you need a doctor during the day during the week? Your best bet is to search for the guardia medica turistica for tourists (online, or ask your hotel reception or apartment host). Unfortunately, it’s usually only available in larger cities or places that get a lot of tourists (like the beaches or mountains in the summer). You can make an appointment to see a doctor at the guardia medica turistica and you’ll pay a small fee (usually 10-25€).
Here’s a flyer for the guardia medica turistica in the Val Gardena in the Dolomites.

If you don’t have access to a guardia medica turistica, ask your accommodation for help making an appointment with a doctor.
Good To Know: We have new lingo for the guardia medica. You’ll sometimes hear it referred to as continuità assistenziale.
Good To Know: There are also private clinics that cater to tourists. These can be a good option as well, especially if you may need follow up visits or communication with doctors in your home country. Note that the fees at these clinics can be much higher than the guardia medica turistica. An example is International Health Florence.
Go To The Pharmacy

The pharmacy in Italy is called the farmacia and it’s almost always marked with a green plus sign (+).
Inside the pharmacy you can find a trained medical professional (famacista) who can dispense over-the-counter and prescription medicines. Some pharmacists may fill a prescription from overseas, but more than likely (99% of the time) you will be asked to see a doctor in Italy first.
You can describe the issue to the pharmacist. If you need to, use Google Translate or an Italian dictionary app.
A pharmacist in Italy cannot help your child if he/she has a major injury or illness. In that case, you’ll need to go to the guardia medica (see above) or the hospital.
Read more about Pharmacies in Italy
Vocabulary for Describing Emergencies, Illnesses, or Injuries
Some words you may use to describe your child’s emergency, illness, or injury:
Allergy – allergia
Bite – morso
Bleeding – sanguinante
Choke – soffocare
Cold (as in ‘I have a cold’) – raffreddore
Cough – tosse
CPR – rianimazione
Diarrhea – diarrea
Fever – febbre
Fracture – frattura
Headache – mal di testa
It hurts [here] – fa male [qui]
Pain – dolore
Poison – veleno
Seizure – attacco
Sore throat – mal di gola
Swallowed – ingoiato
Unconscious – svenuto
Vomit – vomito
FAQs
Is it true medical and hospital visits are free for tourists in Italy? Not always, so I wouldn’t expect it. In my time working as a guide, most hospital stays and doctor visits for tourists I’ve been with have been free, but there have occasionally been charges. I know that some regions (especially those with many visitors) are trying to introduce a plan to charge visitors for medical services and are directing visitors to the guardia medica turistica (which charges a small fee).
Do I need to have travel insurance for our family trip to Italy? I always recommend getting travel insurance for a trip to Italy. While our medical care doesn’t cost what it does in the US, you could be faced with an emergency or need to be medically transported back to your home country. Even if you don’t end up using your travel insurance (yay!), it will give you peace of mind while you’re traveling. I ‘walk the talk’ because I never leave the country without travel insurance.
Will we have to wait a long time to be seen in the emergency room in Italy? It’s probably similar to your home country. The emergency department at the hospital will assign a level to your child’s emergency. High-priority emergencies will be seen first. I have waited anywhere from 5 minutes to hours, depending on the emergency and how crowded it was when we arrived.
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