Persian-speaking Doctors

Persian-speaking doctors and dentists across Germany, from the family practice you register with to the specialists you get sent on to. Describing a symptom is precise work: burning is not stabbing, and pulling is not throbbing. Those distinctions are what a diagnosis gets built on, and most people only have them in their first language. There is a second reason as well. Before a procedure you sign a consent form, and consent you did not fully understand is not really consent.

In an emergency, or if there is a risk to life, call 112. Outside surgery hours the medical on-call service answers on 116 117, and it can also help you find an appointment. This page is only a directory and is not an emergency service.

Start with a family doctor, then the specialist

The family doctor (General practitioners) is the usual way in. They keep your history, treat most things themselves, write referrals and sick notes, and are the person who knows which specialist you actually need. With statutory insurance you are generally free to book a specialist directly, and only a few fields, such as radiology, work almost entirely on referral. Many practices still ask for one because it helps them bill, so bring it if your doctor has written one.

The fields people look for first are Dentists, Gynecologists, Pediatricians, Dermatologists and Orthopedists. Every specialty on this page sits in the Specialty filter above the results.

Getting an appointment

Waiting times for a specialist can be long. What actually shortens them:

• Call several practices instead of waiting on one answer.
• Ask for the cancellation list, not only the waiting list. Cancellations are how most short-notice slots appear.
• Say when it is urgent, and say what the referral is for.
• Ask whether the practice holds an open surgery (offene Sprechstunde), where you are seen without an appointment.
• Say which insurance you have when you book. Statutory and private patients are often offered different slots, and it is better to know that at the start than after a month of waiting.

What to bring to the first appointment

• Your electronic health insurance card, or your insurer's details if you are privately insured.
• The referral slip, if you have one.
• A list of your medication giving the active ingredient, not only the brand name. Brand names differ from one country to the next, and the active ingredient is what a doctor here will recognise. Writing the dose beside it saves an entire conversation.
• Earlier findings, reports and scans, on paper or on a disc. A report from abroad is worth bringing even when it is not in German.
• Your vaccination record, if you have one, and for a child whatever you have from earlier check-ups.

Why a doctor who speaks your language

Insurance in Germany generally does not cover an interpreter for a medical appointment, so in practice people bring a relative. That works for directions and not for medicine. A family member translates what they think you mean, softens whatever sounds alarming, and a child interpreting for a parent is asked to carry something no child should have to. Nobody in that room is at fault, and the information still arrives thinner than it left.

A doctor who speaks Persian takes out the middle step, which counts for most exactly where talking is hardest: an examination you feel ashamed of, a question about fertility, a diagnosis you need to hear again slowly. It also means you can say the thing you were not planning to say, which is often the thing that mattered. If you fast, or you are taking something prescribed to you in another country, say so, because either can change what the doctor decides.

Dentists work differently

Dentistry has its own billing, and knowing how before you sit down saves money. Statutory insurance covers basic treatment. For crowns, bridges, implants and orthodontics you receive a written treatment and cost plan (Heil- und Kostenplan) that goes to your insurer before the work starts, and you pay a share yourself. The check-up booklet (Bonusheft), stamped once a year, raises the insurer's share later, which makes an annual check-up worth more than it looks. Ask for that plan in writing every time, and ask what the practice charges for anything the insurer will not cover.

Sick notes and prescriptions

If you cannot work, the practice issues a certificate of incapacity (Arbeitsunfähigkeitsbescheinigung) and now sends it to your insurer electronically. You still have to tell your employer yourself, within whatever deadline your contract sets, and that deadline is usually short. Prescriptions are electronic as well, and you collect them at the pharmacy with your card or through the app.

What to ask when you call

• Whether they take your kind of insurance.
• Whether somebody there speaks Persian, and who. A practice can have several doctors and only one of them may.
• Surgery hours, and whether there is an open surgery without an appointment.
• Whether they want a referral before they will book you in.
• For a dentist, whether you get the cost plan in writing before any treatment.
• Whether they make home visits, and whether the practice is step-free.
• YabInfy checks none of this, so ask for it yourself, and ask to see the document where it matters.

Choosing from this list

Reviews here tell you about the things a patient can genuinely judge: how long the wait was, whether the diagnosis was explained in a way that made sense, how the reception desk treats people, whether anybody called back. They are not a verdict on clinical skill and should not be read as one. Verified says one thing only: a real person stands behind this profile and manages it themselves. YabInfy does not check anyone's certificates, licences, experience or competence, and the badge is not for sale. Contact details sit behind "Show contact details" on each profile and reach the practice directly.

Your privacy counts on a list like this: YabInfy does not show who viewed a page or who got in touch. The only thing that becomes public is a review you write yourself, under a name you choose.

For physiotherapy, speech therapy, nutrition or care services, see Allied health, and for therapy or psychiatry, Mental health. There is more about how this site works in the FAQ, and if you run a practice, add your business.