# Medication and Prescription Help



## elsabel (Jul 6, 2015)

Hello-

I may be moving to the Netherlands to go to school this fall, I am still waiting to see if my applications are accepted at the universities I have applied to. I am trying to do as much research in advance as I possibly can.

I have Hashimoto's Disease (hypothyroidism). It's taken me about a year to get on the correct dose of medication but I'm finally functional again, feeling better and taking the right dosage of everything. I take:

125mcg of Levothyroxine
and
5mcg of Levothyronnine

I'm also on replacement vitamin D bc the hypothyroidism drastically lowered my vitamin D.

It's crucial for me to receive this medication and I want to be feeling as well as possible if I end up going to school in the NL. I've found statistics on how many ppl in the NL have this disease, I've found the alternate names of this medication in the NL but no information on if I will be able to get my same medication over there and how hypothyroidism is regarded and if dr's in the NL are good about treating it.

I'm going to contact some kind of non-profit patient advocate group for foreigners I've found called Florine but I wondered if anyone in here might be able to help me or if they have it and have found meds, or if they have a good dr they like. We will either be in Rotterdam or Leiden.

My plan is to go over with the largest prescription of my current meds as I can (hopefully 6m-12m) worth so I have plenty of time to find a good dr in the NL and to get a big letter from my dr stating what I need and why, along with all my records of course. I don't know If I should go so far as to get a Dutch translation of this letter. I guess I'm a bit paranoid about medical stuff and not wanting anyone to be confused. I've traveled abroad before but never with a serious illness.

I've read the the Dutch are more conservative about prescribing meds, which is part of why I am concerned. I really, literally can't live without this medicine at this dose. But I did read a story about a girl who found it much easier and cheaper to get the insulin she needed for her diabetes when she was in the NL. So. I'm hopeful but cautious.

Thank you for your time!


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

When you get to the Netherlands, you may want to ask about your meds to the local pharmacist. They know (or can find out fairly readily) how the various drugs are marketed in the country, in what dosages, etc. They may even be willing to tell you the name of a doctor or two in the are who prescribes this or has prescribed it in the past. 

The other place to check is the online sites about the national health system. If your medications are covered by the national health, then it shouldn't be a problem getting your prescription written within the system. Not sure if that information is available online (like it is here in France) but it can't hurt to ask.
Cheers,
Bev


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## cschrd2 (Oct 31, 2011)

Since the Dutch health system scans for cheaper alternatives continuously to keep the cost of health care affordable, make sure you have a couple of brand names ready. Any pharmacy (they are unlike the us not combined with drugstores) can tell you what's available. Quite some of them will answer online/e-mail inquiries.


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