Pickpocketing is common in the busiest tourist areas of Barcelona, such as La Rambla and the Gothic Quarter (Barri Gotic), where bags and medication are often taken. Luggage going missing on the way in is another common way people arrive without their tablets. And a trip that simply ran longer than the prescription did is the most common situation of all.
Whatever the cause, the practical problem is the same. Barcelona is large and busy, the working languages in healthcare are Catalan and Spanish, and finding a clinic that can see you, in English, the same day takes time you may not have. A short online review you complete from your accommodation avoids the trek.
- How many doses do you have left? Even one or two changes what is sensible while a prescription is arranged.
- Is this medication safe to miss? Some medicines should not be stopped abruptly. If yours is one, do not wait.
- Do you have evidence of your regimen? A photo of the box, or a recent prescription, makes a continuation review much faster.
Spanish pharmacies dispense prescription-only medicine against a Spanish prescription, either a private receta privada issued electronically through REMPe, or a public-system receta. A UK or other foreign prescription, paper or electronic, will not normally be honoured at the counter, although a pharmacist may use it as evidence of your regimen when you go to obtain a Spanish prescription.
A pharmacist can advise on minor ailments and sell over-the-counter remedies, and a few medicines that are prescription-only in the UK are available over the counter in Spain. But controlled drugs, antibiotics, anticoagulants, weight-loss medication and anything else on the Spanish prescription-only list still require a valid receta.
A UK GHIC or EHIC card, and the public system (CatSalut) in Catalonia, cover necessary and emergency treatment, but not routine repeat prescriptions or private care. So for medication you already take, you usually need a private Spanish prescription, and a Spanish pharmacy will only dispense against one.
You complete a short online request describing the medication you already take and your situation, in English. A Spanish-registered, English-speaking doctor reviews it. Where it is safe and clinically appropriate, the doctor issues a Spanish electronic private prescription (a receta privada on REMPe, with a QR code) that any Spanish pharmacy can dispense.
The review is EUR 50, and you only pay if a doctor issues a prescription. There is no charge if your request is declined. Any medication is paid for separately at the pharmacy that dispenses it. This is a continuation service for medication you are already established on, not first-time prescribing of new medicines.
What to have ready: the full name of the medication, the dose, how often you take it, the condition it is for, the name of your usual doctor, and a photograph of the box or a recent prescription if you have one. For UK patients, the NHS app usually has all of this in one place.
The Holiday Doctor scope is deliberately narrow, and the service is online only. We are not an in-person clinic in Barcelona, and we are not an emergency service.
- Controlled drugs - strong opioid painkillers, ADHD medications, benzodiazepines, sleeping tablets, and others
- Weight-loss medication
- Anticoagulants and medications requiring regular blood monitoring
- Insulin starts and complex diabetes regimens
- Complex psychiatric medication regimens, particularly antipsychotics
- New conditions outside our published scope
- Anyone under 18, or anyone not physically in Spain
- Anything that needs an in-person examination to assess safely
For any of these, the right route is a Centro de Salud, Urgencias, or a private GP in person. For urgent or life-threatening symptoms, call 112. For non-urgent health advice in Catalonia you can call 061 (Salut Respon). The consultation form will tell you immediately, at no charge, if your situation is outside scope.