What to do when your child is sick in Berlin?

When relocating to a foreign country with a family, one of the things parents are concerned about sooner or later, is knowing what to do when their child falls ill.  It can be especially daunting if you do not know the language or if it is the middle of the night, or you are alone with the children without a family member or support person with you. Starting with the basics and finishing with emergency services, here is what you need to know about what to do in Berlin when your child needs medical attention.

In this article we will cover:

1. Finding a Doctor – in this case a Paediatrician, in German “Kinderarzt”

2. After hours Kinderarzt Service

3. Medical Emergency Service Number

3. Pharmacies and where to find one open after hours

4. Emergency telephone numbers

5. Paediatric clinics with extended practice hours

6. Paediatric hospitals in Berlin for after hours and emergencies

Doctors: Paediatrician – Kinderarzt

Depending on how sick your child is, the main first port of call would be the child’s paediatrician. In German, this is known as a Kinderarzt. After you register to live in Germany you’ll need to find your child a local doctor. The paediatrician is where you should go for any children’s health concerns or if you need medication or check-ups. They can then refer you to a specialist if you need one. After you find a Paediatrician that is taking on new patients (this can be challenging in some neighbourhoods of Berlin), often you can turn up without an appointment, but be prepared to wait a long time, and be aware that even if the doctors can speak English, the receptionists may not do so.

Archer Relocation offers a service for finding local services including a doctors for you and your family.

24 hrs Kinderarzt Service – Private

In Berlin, there is also a 24 hours Kinderarzt service called ‘Kinderarztruf’ on 0700 1972 0000. This is a small group of experienced paediatricians who will come to you after business hours, in the middle of the night, even on public holidays.  After you call the emergency hotline you will get a call back from a paediatrician, they will come to your home within 60-90m mins, provide you with support and answer any questions that may follow. This is a private service, that can be covered by private insurance or you pay out of your own pocket 100 – 180 EUR.

More information here – you can even follow them on Facebook and Twitter!

Medical Emergency Service – Ärztlicher Bereitschaftsdienst

– covered by your statutory or private insurance

The medical emergency service of the Kassenärztliche Vereinigung (KV) Berlin is there for the citizens around the clock, and free of charge for those insured.  This service is for patients who can not get to a doctor for health reasons, and are in urgent need of medical at home in Berlin. Even at night and on weekends. This number is for all patients and not only for children.

You can call the telephone numbers (030) 310031 or (030) 116117 24 hrs

Pharmacies – Apotheke

Pharmacies are a great place to go for all those over the counter medications you might need when your child is ill. They are also great for advice on what is best for their particular sickness. Generally, pharmacies in Berlin are open normal business hours, which is 9 am till 6 pm. (although many are open from 7 or 8 am). So, what happens after hours? There are a couple of solutions if you find yourself out of children’s Neurofen and your toddler has a fever.

Take your self to a late night or all hours’ pharmacy. The major 24-hour pharmacy in Berlin is located at the Apotheke Berlin Hauptbahnhof, at the Berlin main train station, Europaplatz1, 10557 Berlin. This location is incredibly handy, especially as many trains, trams, and busses travel through there at all hours of the night. Ph. (030) 206 12190

Another late night pharmacy is the Berlin Apotheke. Located at Friedrichstr. 113a in Mitte, right outside the Oranienburger Tor U-Bahn station, this pharmacy is open from 8 am until midnight, but they will also deliver what you need for a small fee. Ph. (030) 2833 530

Dotted around Berlin are other pharmacies that may be open until 10 pm and on Sundays, but for when you can’t get to these, or more commonly, can’t travel to the late night pharmacies, there is a wonderful, rotating local system where the pharmacies in your area alternate a night shift. These are called a Notdienst Apotheke, or Nachtapotheke. Click in this link and you can enter your local postcode or zip code to find your closest Nachtapotheke. When you get there, don’t be deterred by the fact it might look closed. The door will be shut but there will be a special window at the entrance where you can talk to the pharmacist, and possibly a buzzer if you need to call them to the door. This is a great service for any late night pharmaceutical emergencies.

If you have any questions about medication there is a 24 hr pharmacy and medication helpline  on 01189

Emergencies phone numbers

A medical emergency concerning a child is often one of the scariest moments in a parent’s life. It is worth while to have the emergency numbers printed out somewhere, like stuck on the fridge, or office wall, or even already programmed in your phone so you can get to them, and they can get to you, as quickly as possible.

The Pan-European Emergency number to call from Berlin is 112 and this is free to call from any telephone line. 112 is the most common and widely known emergency number in Germany and the EU. Think of it as your 000 or 911 call. More info here.

This number will connect you to what you need, but if we want to break this down a little further into emergency categories, you’ll need this list:

Police (Polizei) 110

Fire (Feuerwehr) 112

Ambulance (Rettungswagen/Krankenwagen) 112

Dental emergency service  (Zahnartznotdienst) 030 8900 4333

Poison emergency services  (Giftnotruf) 030 192 40

Children’s emergency helpline  030 610 061

Paediatric clinics with extended practice hours:

In case of an emergency or outside of office hours you will need to go to the emergency department at a hospital, but you will want to know before hand which hospitals have a paediatric station.  If you are taking a taxi, ask them to take you to a hospital, Krankenhaus, that has a Kinderstation, or a Kinderrettungsstelle.  Here is a list of hospitals in Berlin with a paediatric department and their opening hours. The title links to the hospitals’s website.

LICHTENBERG

Sanaklinikum Lichtenberg -Department of Paediatrics
Fanningerstrasse 32, 10365 Berlin
Telephone 030 / 5518-0
Fax 030 / 5518-4004
Child Rescue Center: Tel. 030 / 5518-5104 / -5010
9am – 8 pm and after hours

CHARLOTTENBURG

DRK clinics Berlin – Westend / Charlottenburg
Spandauer Damm 130 (Entrance Fürstenbrunner Weg)
Wednesdays: 3pm – 10pm
Friday: 3pm – 10 pm
Saturdays / Sundays / public holidays: 9am -10 pm
On call at night

TEMPELHOF

St. Joseph Hospital / Tempelhof
Bäumerplan 24  (Entrance Gontermannstraße 41)
Wednesdays: 3pm – 10pm Friday: 3pm – 10 pm
Saturdays / Sundays / public holidays: 11am to 10pm
On call at night

MITTE/WEDDING

DRK Clinic Berlin – Mitte / Wedding Center
Drontheimer Straße 39-40
Wednesdays: 3pm – 10pm
Friday: 3pm – 10pm
Saturdays / Sundays / public holidays: 11am to 10pm

KÖPENICK

Pediatric Emergency Service / DRK Kliniken Berlin
Köpenick Salvador Allende Street 2-8
Rescue center (entrance Müggelschlößchenweg)
Fridays: 3 pm – 8pm
Saturdays / Sundays / public holidays: 9-20 o’clock

Paediatric Clinics – For emergencies after hours please contact the following children’s hospitals:

WESTEND / CHARLOTTENBURG

DRK-Kliniken Westend / Charlottenburg
Spandauer Damm 130, 14050 Berlin
Telephone: 030 / 3035-0, First-Aid: 030 / 3035-4480

FRIEDRICHSHAIN

Krankenhaus im Friedrichshain
Landsberger Allee 49, 10249 Berlin
Telephone: 030 / 4221-0, First-Aid: 030 / 4221-1546

BUCH/PANKOW

Klinikum Buch in Pankow
Karower street 11, house Z 108, 13125 Berlin
Telephone: 030 / 9401-0, First-Aid: First-Aid: 030 / 94011-2880 / 288

STEGLITZ

Klinikum Benjamin Franklin / Steglitz
Kinderklinik Klingsorgstraße, 12200 Berlin
Telefon: 030 / 8445-0, First-Aid: 030 / 8445-3015

SPANDAU

Evangelisches Waldkrankenhaus / Spandau
Stadtrandstraße 555-561, 13589 Berlin
Telefon: 030 / 3702-0, First-Aid: 030 / 3702-1050

TEMPELHOF

St. Joseph-Krankenhaus / Tempelhof

Bäumerplan 24, 12101 Berlin
Telefon: 030 / 7882-0, First-Aid:030 / 7882-2710

WEDDING

Charité Campus Virchow / Wedding
Augustenburger Platz 1 (PKW Seestraße), 13353 Berlin
Telefon: 030 / 4505-0, First-Aid:030 / 450 666 128

ZEHLENDORF

HELIOS Klinikum Emil von Behring / Zehlendorf
Walterhöferstr. 11, 14165 Berlin
Telefon: 030 / 8102-0, First-Aid:030 / 8102-64970

Regardless of if you have moved to Berlin to live, or if you are simply visiting, this information is essential for any English speaking family in Berlin, and we hope it has helped in some way to make easier the situation of having a sick child in Berlin.

Written by Emily Archer.

Emily is Managing Director of Archer Relocation.  As your Relocation Consultant she is your first new friend in Berlin. Originally from Australia, Emily lived in Melbourne, Sydney and Barcelona before moving to Munich in 1999.  Resident to Berlin since 2003, Emily has now been in Germany for more than 18 years. Emily founded Archer Relocation early 2015 desiring to use her first hand experience and professional skills to assist fellow expats moving to Berlin.  Archer Relocation offers the services you need to make your arrival in Berlin a smooth one, including home search, bureaucracy, immigration, and family assistance.

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