Health

The health guide for migrants in Saxony („Gesundheitswegweiser für Migrantinnen und Migranten“) is aimed at immigrants, whereas information is also provided for asylum seekers and temporary residents. The health guide covers the key issues of health care. First, an issue is described and then possible steps to be taken are proposed, with naming the competent local points of contact.

Some of the information in the guidance relates to topics covered in the Health Guide. This will then be pointed out.

Brochure “Willkommen im Freistaat Sachsen” (Welcome to Saxony)

The brochure „Willkommen im Freistaat Sachsen“ (Welcome to Saxony) is aimed at immigrants. It provides important information on the issues of work, housing, education, etc. Information on health care can be found in Chapter 8 “Health and Consumer Protection” (“Gesundheit und Verbraucherschutz“). The brochure describes the German health care system and gives information on health insurance and on how to get access to medicine.

Also, Chapter 11 lists contacts in case of various emergencies.

Information on various diseases in German, Russian and in parts Turkish and Arabic can be found here:

Welcome to Germany – web site of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees – available in English, Turkish and Russian

Website of the Federal Ministry of Health

The Federal Ministry of Health has a homepage with information on diseases, examinations, downloads of brochures, questionnaires and more specifically for migrants and refugees. The information is available in 40 different languages.

Medical services covered by the compulsory health insurance

In Germany each person has a right and a duty to acquire a mandatory health insurance. With a mandatory health insurance, a person receives a chip card that allows him/her to visit a doctor. If you need medication from the pharmacy, you have to pay a certain proportion yourself, depending on your health plan. The rest will be paid by your health insurance company. You will find a more detailed information on the mandatory health insurance in Chapter 2 of the Health Guide linked above.

Medical care for asylum seekers

People who have been registered as asylum seekers in Germany are granted a right to basic medical care for the first 18 months in the country. However, this basic medical care only covers the most urgent treatment. Asylum seekers will receive a treatment only in case of acute disease or severe pain, important vaccinations, and pregnancy examinations.

To learn more about medical care for asylum seekers, see Chapter 3 of the Health Guide linked above.

Asylum seekers receive following treatments:

• Medical check-ups during pregnancy, medical services during childbirth, post-natal care
• Mandatory medical check-ups and vaccinations for children, and
• Vaccinations against tetanus, diphtheria and polio for adults.

Electronic health card or health insurance certificate

Since 1 April, 2020 asylum seekers residing in Dresden have the right to acquire an electronic health card. They can apply for it at the Social Security Office (Sozialamt). Everyone, who has an electronic health card, needs to present it each time he/she visits a doctor. A health insurance certificate from the Social Security Office (Sozialamt) will no longer be required.

Only those who do not have an electronic health card still have to present a health insurance certificate. In case of acute diseases and pain, a health insurance certificate must be applied for at the Social Security Office (Sozialamt). The health insurance certificate must be handed over to a treating doctor. The doctor will be treating only patient with a valid health insurance certificate.

To obtain an electronic health card and health insurance certificate, please contact:

Sozialamt/Abteilung Migration (Social Security Office / Migration Division)

Junghansstraße 2, 01227 Dresden

Phone: 0351-4884821

E-Mail: sozialamt@dresden.de

In case of serious emergencies, hospitals and doctors are obliged to treat a patient immediately without waiting for the health insurance certificate.

Asylum seekers residing for a period of over 18 months will generally receive a right to acquire a mandatory health insurance with a personal chip card. The electronic health card for asylum seekers can no longer be used then. The chip card for the mandatory health insurance differs from the electronic health card for asylum seekers and thus requires a new application. With the new chip card asylum seekers have a regular health insurance cover (further information on this topic can be found in section Medical Care with Mandatory Health Insurance („Medizinische Versorgung in der gesetzlichen Krankenversicherung“).

Emergency Services – Important contacts in case of emergency

Should you need emergency medical care at night or on weekends, you can contact the statutory health insurance emergency services by calling 116 117, or you could call an ambulance. In case of accidents or potentially fatal emergencies, please contact emergency services – calling these numbers is for free.

For emergency services, dial 112. For police, dial 110.

When calling these numbers, be ready to answer the following questions:

• What happened?
• Where did it happen?
• How many injured/sick people are there?
• What injuries/ health concerns are there?
• Please do not hang up – additional questions may be necessary.

Refugee clinic

A refugee clinic was established on the grounds of the University Hospital Dresden (Uniklink Dresden) in 2015, which is now called International Practice Dresden. At the refugee clinic asylum seekers can receive treatment, which they are entitled to (for more Information visit section Medical Care for Asylum Seekers). Patients from different nations are treated in the practice. Their language and cultural differences are taken into account. The practice offers the following services: general medical consultation, pediatrician consultation and gynecologist consultation.

Contact details:

phone number: 0351-42643297

E-Mail:  internationalePraxis.Dresden@kvsachsen.de

The address of the International Practice Dresden:

Fiedlerstraße 25 (Haus 28 of the University Hospital Dresden), 01307 Dresden

Office hours:

Please note the acute and appointment consultation hours!

General practitioner acute consultation hours

Monday - Friday: 8:30 a. m. - 09:30 a. m.

Family doctor appointment consultation hours

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: 11 a. m. - 17 p. m.

Wednesday, Friday: 11 a. m. - 14 p. m.

Pediatric appointment hours (by appointment)

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: 8:30 a. m. - 17 p. m.

Wednesday, Friday: 8:30 a. m. - 14 p. m.

Gynecological consultation hours (by appointment)

Monday: 8:30 a. m. - 17 p. m.

Tuesday: 13 p. m. - 17 p. m.

Wednesday: 8:30 a. m. - 14 p. m.

There are also flyers with a route description and additional information on the website of the refugee clinic. The website can be found here:

KOSMOS

If you don’t have a residence permit or a health insurance and need medical care, you can contact Medinetz Dresden. Also Asylum seekers and EU citizens without legal papers  can receive anonymous medical advice from a group of medical specialists for free.

Phone: 0177-1736781

Adress: Safe DD, St. Petersburger Straße 14, 01069 Dresden

Doctors and therapists

When you are sick and need treatment with medication or therapy, you can consult a doctor or another health care professional. The doctor will give you a prescription that you need to take to the pharmacy in order to receive your medication or a referral for making an appointment at a therapist.

There are doctors in Dresden who also speak foreign languages. Should you, however, need help with translation during medical treatment, please check out the options for that in section Language and Cultural Mediation.

If you are a recent asylum seeker (residing period under 18 months), you need an electronic health card or health insurance certificate for any visit or treatment at a health care specialist.

Health Care Office

The Health Care Office (Gesundheitsamt) of the City of Dresden makes a special contribution to health care and health services for the promotion and protection of the people. In addition, there are special offers for health promotion and counselling especially for children and youngsters, disabled people and people in Dresden with acute health or social problems. On the web sites of the Health Care Office (Gesundheitsamt) one can find information on various health care issues.

The web site is available here:

On the web site of the City of Dresden there is a page for the Health Care Office (Gesundheitsamt), where contact points for different health-related issues are listed.

Please find the page here:

Additionally the health department’s hotline is available for any questions you may have: 0351-4885322

For more information on the activities and services of the Health Care Office (Gesundheitsamt), please consult Chapter 1 of the Health Guide (Gesundheitswegweiser).

Social Security Office (Sozialamt)

Considering the health status, the Social Security Office (Sozialamt) is responsible for issuing the electronic health card and the health insurance certificates to asylum seekers and determining degrees of disability. You can also contact the office if you or a member of your family needs any assistance with nursing care. The Department of Social Services (Abteilung Soziale Leistungen) is responsible for determining the degree of disability and also acts as a contact point for the provisioning of nursing care. You can find their web page here:

Responsible for determining degrees of disability and contact person for care services is the Department of Social Benefits, which you can find under the following link:

The Department of Migration (Abteilung Migration) is responsible for issuing the electronic health card and the health certificates for asylum seekers. Please find their web page here:

Self-help

People with health, mental health or social problems come together with others who are in a similar situation in self-help groups. Through that they can cope with their lives better.

In a community one can experience contact and exchange with others, be understood and receive information. Also, one can find balance and energy. Above all, however, ways out of loneliness and solutions to ones problems.

For information about self-help groups on the website of the City of Dresden please click here:

The Social Security Office (Sozialamt) of the City of Dresden has published a brochure on the subject of self-help. The brochure is called „Selbsthilfe. Wegweiser zu gesundheitlichen und sozialen Gruppen” (in translation, Self-help. Guide to health and social groups.) and it is available in German here:

All information on self-help groups is summarized on the following page. The information is also available at the bottom of the page in English, Farsi, Arabic, Russian, Vietnamese and Tigrinya.

Pharmacy

For receiving the medication that has been prescribed by a doctor or other health care professional, please turn to a pharmacy. Depending on your valid health insurance, you may have to pay for the medication in a certain extent. In many pharmacies the personnel speaks English in addition to German. Some may also be able to speak Russian, Spanish or French. Using an Internet search engine enter search words “Apotheke Dresden [your language of interest] to find a pharmacy best suited for you language needs.

Healthconsultation at the association of foreigners e. V.

Consultation mediaton in health-related questions:

– orientation in the german healtsystem

– children’s-, women’s- and men’s health

– preventive healthcare

Ausländerrat Dresden e. V., Außenstelle Bönischplatz
Bönischplatz 11
01307 Dresden

Consultations take place exclusively by appointment.

Contact persons:

Mehrnaz Pohl-Shirazi: 0179 43 58 38 8 | pohl-shirazi@auslaenderrat.de (German, English, Persian)

Madeleine Steinborn: 0176 47 69 68 54 | steinborn@auslaenderrat.de (German, English)

Katharina Wegmann: 0176 48 09 34 00 | wegmann@auslaenderrat.de (German, English)

If you do not speak German well, there are several possible ways to receive medical care inspite of any language barrier. You can use the community interpreting service which will accompany you to medical visits. An interpreter will mediate between the patient and the doctor. However, there are also doctors in Dresden who speak foreign languages.

Find out which doctors in and around Dresden speak your preferred language by using the search engine of the Saxon Public Doctor’s Association (Kassenärztlichen Vereinigung Sachsen).

Community interpreting

Through the community interpreting service one can establish a contact with multilingual interpreters, who translate at visits to a doctor or a therapist. They are native speakers who continually improve their relevant skills. Due to their understanding of the cultural background of the person who they provide the interpreting service for, they can better convey on sensitive issues. Both the community interpreters and the medical personnel are bound by professional secrecy. This means they are not allowed to discuss your matters with anybody, including doctors or other health care professionals.

To find websites for community interpreting services, please click here:

Addiction

The development of a dependence disorder is known as addiction. It is often a long process, which can take place in many small steps. The behaviour, the experience, the habits and the personality can change. Such change can sometimes not be noticed immediately.

Are you or have people around you become addicted? There are various places in Dresden that deal with the issues. One can get information on the subject, find help and support in beating their addiction.

There is a specialist at work in Dresden who deals with addiction issues. The specialist’s contact information and counselling facility addresses can be found on the relevant web page here:

There is a brochure listing groups that deal with self-help in case of addiction in Dresden. To know more about self-help groups, please consult the section “Self-help”.

The brochure can be found here:

The City of Dresden has published two flyers informing about the handling of alcohol and other legal and illegal drugs. In the flyers you will find information about applicable laws, dangers of alcohol consumption and contacts to advice centres if you need help.

Under the heading "Addiction and Migration" you will find the flyers with information on alcohol and other drugs in German, English, Arabic, Persian/Farsi, Pashtu and Tigrinya:

There is now also a multilingual brochure entitled "Recognize Addiction". It is a guide for relatives and friends of people who have an addiction. Under the heading "Addiction and Migration" you will find the brochure in German, English, Arabic, Farsi, Pashtu, Russian and Tigrinya.

More information on addiction and addresses for where to look for help with such matters can be found in Chapter 9 of the Health Guide linked above.

Safe DD- Street social work for adults

The Safe DD project is an addiction-specific streetwork project in which specialists offer low-threshold and social-space oriented support for adult people who are mostly outside the existing help system. The focus of the work is on accompanying people on their way to a self-determined life and averting endangering life situations. The project consists of two teams, which are active in the public space in the districts of Altstadt/ Neustadt and Gorbitz/Prohlis, where the addressees are staying.

Adress:  Sankt Petersburger Straße 14, 01069 Dresden

Website: www.suchtzentrum.de/safe-dd

Pregnancy 

Pregnancy consultation offices provide support with and advice about pregnancy-related issues. You could visit the offices when you are not sure, if you want to be having a baby. Also, you can turn to the offices when you want to know more about the financial benefit possibilities for parents, or if you need practical tips for the time before and after birth.

Please find the list of pregnancy consultation offices in Dresden here:

You are pregnant and have many questions or are worried? Then you can contact the support hotline. There you can receive anonymous advice in various languages, completely free of charge. Or you can use the website to look for help online or to find local advice centres. Consultation is available in English, French, Spanish, Polish, Russian, Turkish, Arabic and many other languages.

The support hotline “Pregnant in need – anonymous and safe” also provides support to women who want to keep their pregnancy a secret. The flyer is multilingual and contains initial information on where pregnant women who wish to have an anonymous birth can turn. The Flyer is available in 14 different languages, including German, English, French, Spanish, Polish, Russian, Turkish and Arabic.

Please find the flyer here:

Asylum seekers have the right to certain benefits during pregnancy. These include checkups during pregnancy, childbirth services, and care after birth. In order to receive these services, one must obtain a medical certificate from the Social Security Office (Sozialamt).

The Federal Foundation Mother and Child (Bundesstiftung Mutter und Kind) supports least privileged mothers who are experiencing financial of social difficulty.

The Federal Foundation-Mother and Child (Bundesstiftung Mutter und Kind) has issued a flyer in 15 languages, including English, Arabic and Russian. Please choose your desired language from the right-hand side of the web site.

The flyer is available here:

You can also get information on zanzu.de about various topics related to family planning. Among other things, here you can find out about contraception options, pregnancy and childbirth. The website offers a lot of information on these and other topics in 12 languages, including German, English, Russian, Turkish, Arabic, Farsi and French.

Dental health

In case of toothache you can see a dentist. Continuous and regular dental care is important. The provided link will take you to a web site offering information about dental health and any applicable services. The information is available in German, English, Spanish, French, Russian, Turkish, Romanian and Arabic.

There is a dental clinic designated for children and youngsters (Kinder- und Jugendzahnklinik) in Dresden. The clinic provides dental health services such as dental health consultations and check-ups for children and Teens.

Information about the clinic can be found on the website of the City of Dresden here:

Asylum seekers generally have no right for dental care. However exceptions are made in case of severe pain or if there is an actual threat of permanent damage. In either case a medical certificate from the Social Security Office (Sozialamt) is required.

More information on dental care, including addresses of places that offer help and care in these matters, have been brought out in Chapter 6 of the Health Guide.

Domestic violence

Domestic violence is a term referring to violence taking place between people in a close personal, often family relationship. Usually it is carried out by men over women and children, whereas the acts of violence commonly take place at home. Violence caused by a husband or wife or a life partner is not excused by anything or anybody. Domestic violence is a crime!

When you are in sever danger, call the police dialling 110.

The Women’s Refuge (Frauenschutzhaus) offers protection to women and their children when they no longer feel safe at home. The address of the house is not publicly known, so that the women and their children could not be found. The house can be reached by phone day and night.

For the multilingual web site of the Women’s Refuge in Dresden, please click here:

The helpline for women suffering from domestic violence is available around the clock throughout the year. With the help of interpreters help is currently offered in the following foreign languages: Albanian, Arabic, Bulgarian, Chinese, English, French, Italian, Kurdish, Persian/Farsi, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian/Serbo-Croatian, Spanish, Turkish and Vietnamese.

Free hotline: 08000 116 016 

In the multilingual brochure of the support hotline you will find information in English, French, German, Turkish, Russian, Polish, Arabic and Farsi:

The website "More protection in case of domestic violence" offers information on the Violence Protection Act in Germany in the languages: German, English, Turkish, Arabic and Persian. 

You can find a brochure with information in Simple German here:

The web site of the hotline is available in German, English, French, Spanish, Polish and Turkish here:

Chapter 10 of the Health Guide offers information on the subject of domestic violence, listing also the addresses one could approach for finding help on these issues.

Mental illness and trauma

Many asylum seekers have been through traumatising experiences. In many cases psychological treatment would be necessary. However, the possibilities of receiving such help are limited for asylum seekers. If you are, or a person near you is, suffering from mental illness or has gone through a trauma, please contact one of the contact points available for that in Dresden.

The Trauma Clinic (Traumaambulanz) is aimed at patients, who suffer from the socio-psychological consequences of traumatic experiences. The doctors at the clinic detect symptoms and decide on initial treatment, which can then be initiated.

The contacts of the Trauma Clinic can be found here:

Under the project named CALM (Counsel, Aid, Liaison for Migrants), the Psychosocial Centre in Dresden (PSZ Dresden) advises psychologically stressed people who are refugees or migrants. The team is international and speaks German, English, Arabic, Farsi, French and Russian.

If you are haunted by stressful memories, often feel sad and helpless or do not know why you are not feeling good, the PSZ Dresden staff can help you.

The PSZ website is available in English, French, German, Spanish, Russian and Arabic and you can find it here:

Phone of trust

The city of Dresden has set up a crisis hotline "phone of trust" for people in emotional distress.

For the contacts of socio-psychiatric services (Sozialpsychiatrischen Dienst) of the City of Dresden, please click here:

In the health guide in chapter 11 you will also find information on psychotherapy and addresses that offer help on this topic.

Information on vaccination and general checkups

In Germany the costs of many vaccinations and general checkups are covered with the public health insurance. A list of these can be found in Chapter 12 of the Health Guide.

The Vaccination Guide contains information about vaccinations in 15 different languages. It can be found under the following link:“ 

The Vaccination Centre (Impfstelle) of the Health Department (Gesundheitsamt) of the City of Dresden gives advice concerning vaccination recommendations and also carries these vaccinations out as necessary. The web site of the centre is available here:

General information in Saxony on Covid vaccination

All information on Corona vaccinations in Saxony can be found at the following link: 

General overview of protective vaccinations

The Saxony Association of Panel Doctors (Kassenärztliche Vereinigung Sachsen) has provided a complete overview of vaccinations. You can find this under the following link:

Vaccinations are one of the benefits that asylum seekers have the right for. Please note that there are differences in the vaccination rules for children and adults. More information on this matter can be found in chapter Medical Care for Asylum Seekers and in Chapters 1, 3 and 12 of the Health Guide.

Additionally, child asylum seekers (entitled for benefit according to § 3 AsylbLG (Asylum law)) have the right for regular compulsory health checkups, as described in Chapter 12 of the Health Guide.

Aids/HIV

The link below will take you to the page of the Counselling Centre of AIDS and Other Sexually Transmitted Diseases (Beratungsstelle für Aids- und sexuell ubertragbare Infektionen). The page informs on testing and where to find help and advice. Also, the page informs about initiatives, associations and government agencies dealing AIDS and HIV.

The web site of the campaign “Give AIDS no chance” (“Gib Aids keine Chance”) presents information on AIDS in several languages, including English, German, French, Bulgarian, Romanian, Turkish and Russian.

Various flyers published within the campaign can be found on the bottom of the page under “Information materials” („Informationsmaterial“).

Information on HIV and AIDS is also available in Chapter 5 of the Health Guide, which also lists contact information of various institutions offering relevant help.

Consultation offers specially for women

Frauen- und Mädchengesundheitszentrum Medea e. V.

(Association Offering Health-related Counselling for Women and Girls)

Many women worldwide are suffering from female genital mutilation. Mutilation is often performed for cultural or religious reasons, irrespective of the severe violation of the girl’s or woman’s mental and physical health. In Germany, mutilation of the female genitals is prohibited, even if the girl lives in Germany and is taken abroad for mutilation. The procedure is a serious violation of human rights and can lead to lifelong negative physical and psychological consequences for those affected.

Affected women can call the support hotline (08000 116 016). There they are advised and can be referred to offers of help. The call is anonymous and confidential.

The project "Desert Flower Dresden" of Akifra e. V. offers counselling and accompanies affected women also during pregnancy. You can find the website here:

Here you will find a brochure which informs about female mutilation in German, French and English:

Further information and a statement in German, English or French, which can be shown to prove that female circumcision is a punishable offence in Germany, can be found here:

Consultation offers specially for men

Männernetzwerk Dresden e.V.

(Association for Men)

Men’s Health Centre at the hospital Dresden-Friedrichstadt

Healthconsultation at the association of foreigners