Istanbul pharmacies: prescriptions, night duty and what to bring
Antibiotics need a prescription, every district keeps one pharmacy open all night, and brand names do not travel, what to bring and what to buy here.
How the Turkish system works
Pharmacies are called eczane and carry a green neon cross. Everything prescription-strength is sold only there, never in a supermarket, and antibiotics have required a prescription by law for over a decade, a clinic that tells you to just buy some is telling you something untrue. Paracetamol, ibuprofen, saline spray and wound dressings are over the counter and cost a few euro.
Nobetci eczane: the night-duty rota
Pharmacies close around 19:00 and on Sundays, but every district keeps one open all night on a rotating duty. The list for that day is posted in the window of every closed pharmacy, and your hotel reception can find the nearest one in about a minute. Sisli always has one within a short taxi ride. You do not need an emergency room for a lost painkiller.
Bring your own medication, and bring the generic name
Brand names do not travel. Write down the international generic name and the dose of everything you take, metformin, levothyroxine, an antidepressant, the contraceptive pill, because a pharmacist here will recognise the molecule and not the box. Bring enough for the trip plus one week. Blood thinners, and this matters more than anything else on the list, must be declared to us in writing before you fly.
What we supply and what you will buy yourself
Your post-operative pack, antibiotic course, painkiller, chlorhexidine mouthwash or saline spray, dressings, is included in the treatment price and handed over before you leave the clinic, with the dosing written in your own language. What you buy yourself is the ordinary stuff: extra paracetamol, throat lozenges, sunscreen, a thermometer. Budget 15 to 25 euro for the trip and keep the receipts if you plan to claim.
The Ones People Actually Ask.
Do pharmacists speak English?
In Sisli, Nisantasi and Taksim, usually yes, and often German. Elsewhere, show the box or the written generic name. It works better than a translation app.
Can a prescription from my own country be filled here?
Not reliably. Turkish pharmacies dispense on Turkish prescriptions, so bring your regular medication with you rather than planning to replace it.
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