Emergency situations
The general emergency number is 112. Call 112 only in life threatening situations, such as
- serious accident or injury
- sudden severe illness
- fire or immediate danger
Calls are free of charge and do not require an area code, even from a mobile phone.
If your emergency requires the help of the police, call 112. If the matter is not urgent, contact local police. More information: services of the police.
Health care options for students
Students in Finland may use one or more of the following health care sectors:
- Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS)
- Public Health Care
- Private Health Care
- Occupational Health Care
1. Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS)
Who can use FSHS?
FSHS services are available only to Bachelor’s and Master’s degree students who have paid the Healthcare fee for Students in Higher Education to KELA (opens in a new tab).
FSHS services are not available to exchange students or PhD students. Students that cannot use FSHS services are advised to use the public or private health services.
FSHS provides
- Preventive health care
- Medical care
- Mental health care
- Dental care
FSHS does not provide:
- Emergency care
- Hospital care
- Maternity care
The services of Finnish Student Health Care Service (opens in a new tab) are limited and only available during the opening hours. FSHS runs health centres in 16 university towns, and the student can have treatment at any of the centres.
Practical notes
- Appointments are required for each visit. See instructions (opens in a new tab) for booking an appointment.
- Please note that the FSHS online services require that your Finnish personal identity code is correctly registered in the Peppi student register.
- If your code is not under your personal information in Peppi, contact the Student and Learning services at [email protected].
- If you are unable to keep the appointment, it must be cancelled no later than the day before to avoid a fee.
- Nurses are available for consultation on weekday mornings without an appointment.
- Dental appointments may involve long waiting times (except acute toothache).
The consultation fees for students at FSHS are very reasonable and services like consultation with a nurse or a general practitioner are free of charge. If you are referred to public health care or a hospital, normal public health care fees apply, and no student discounts are available.
2. Public health care in Finland
Who can use public health care?
- An EU/EEA citizen with the European Health Insurance Card (opens in a new tab) (EHIC).
- A non-EU/EEA citizen with a registered municipality of residence (opens in a new tab) in Finland.
- A citizen of a country with a social security agreement (opens in a new tab) with Finland.
Local services:
- Public Health Care in Joensuu (opens in a new tab)
- Public Health Care in Kuopio (only partly in English, opens in a new tab)
- eHealth Service (opens in a new tab)
3. Private health care
Private health care is available to everyone and usually offers faster access, but you need to be able to afford more expensive fees than in public health care. If you have private health insurance, you might be able to cover the cost from your insurance.
Some private medical centres (links open in a new tab):
4. Occupational health care (UEF staff)
Occupational health care is available only to UEF staff members. Further information in Guide for International Staff.
Insurance and health coverage
EU citizens
- Obtain a European Health Insurance Card before arriving in Finland and always carry it with you.
- This card covers medically necessary treatment in Finland at the same price as local residents. It does not cover treatment outside Finland or medical transport to your home country, so you will also need a separate travel insurance.
- If you do not have the card, please ask your own health insurance office to send it to you.
- Finland has social security agreements related to health care with some other countries, but we advise you to carefully check the coverage of the insurance agreement and conditions on which benefits are available at your own health insurance office before arriving in Finland.
Non-EU citizens
- A private health insurance with sufficient coverage is mandatory for a Finnish residence permit. Check coverage details carefully before arrival.
- Further information on student insurance (opens a new tab).
Medical history, prescriptions, and medicines
- Bring your prescriptions with you if you have an illness that requires regular medical treatment.
- It is recommended to bring your medical history translated into English.
- In Finland medicines are sold only in pharmacies (apteekki), not in supermarkets or grocery stores.
- Pharmacies provide information on the nearest night‑time pharmacy.
- No vaccinations are required for registration at the University of Eastern Finland.