Guidance

Mental health support for British nationals in Italy

Updated 1 August 2023

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/italy-mental-health-support-abroad/mental-health-support-for-british-nationals-in-italy

If you are having mental health issues in Italy, we can:

  • listen to you and help you look at your options
  • help you contact friends and family
  • visit you in hospital or prison
  • raise any concerns about your treatment or welfare – for example, with hospital or prison authorities
  • help doctors in Italy contact UK doctors who know your medical history
  • give you information about local pharmacies
  • offer help, if you choose to remain overseas
  • contact your travel representative or travel insurance company

Whenever possible we will ask your permission before taking any action on your behalf.

We cannot:

  • give you advice on mental health issues
  • buy or supply medication
  • withhold or remove your passport
  • stop you from travelling abroad
  • require you to return to the UK
  • pay for you to return to the UK
  • pay for your food, accommodation or medical bills
  • get you better treatment in hospital or prison than is given to local people

Getting help

Emergencies

In an emergency, you can:

  • call 112 (the single EU emergency number, which will get you straight through to the emergency services – police, ambulance, fire brigade)
  • call 118 for an ambulance
  • call 113 for the police
  • go to the emergency ward (pronto soccorso) at any hospital

Not all emergency services and doctors speak English. If possible, ask a local person to help you with your call.

After hospital doctors assess you, they may refer you to a local mental health centre.

See emergency help for British nationals in Italy.

Living in Italy: less urgent care

If you are registered with an Italian GP (medico di famiglia), you may make an appointment to see them. If necessary, they will help you go to a hospital or the local mental health centre (CSM, centro di salute mentale).

The services CSMs offer vary by region as they are managed by local health authorities (ASL, azienda sanitaria locale).

If you are not yet registered with an Italian GP, you should contact the local ASL to register. Once you are registered, the ASL will give you a list of state-enrolled doctors to choose from. If you have children under age 14, you must also choose a paediatrician.

You may also make an appointment with a private psychologist or a psychiatrist – see list of English-speaking doctors.

Prescriptions: on holiday or just moved

If you are on holiday or have recently moved to Italy and need a repeat or replacement prescription, you should contact a local pharmacy for advice.

Carrying a copy of your prescription can help doctors to find the same or similar medication.

Compulsory hospitalisation

If you have mental health needs and the authorities hospitalise or detain you without your consent, they must contact the British embassy.

We will offer assistance, which you are free to accept or reject. Support for British nationals abroad describes the help we can give.

In Italy a compulsory mental health hospitalisation order is known as a TSO (trattamento sanitario obbligatorio).

Authorities can order a TSO if your case meets all 3 of the following conditions:

  1. You require immediate treatment for ‘psychological changes’.
  2. You refuse treatment.
  3. You cannot be adequately treated by other means.

Only the city’s mayor together with a magistrate can order a TSO, and it generally follows a request from doctors. One of the requesting doctors must be a psychiatrist from the public mental health department.

TSO patients are usually taken to the psychiatric ward of the local hospital or to a mental health centre.

Costs of hospitalisation

The healthcare system in Italy provides free emergency care (pronto soccorso) for everyone, including non-residents. You will need to show a European Health Insurance Card or a Global Health Insurance Card – see Italy: hospitalised abroad.

If you are a resident of Italy and receiving long-term care, you may be asked to pay a ‘ticket’, a small fee that varies by region.

Guardianship

If you are living in Italy and the Italian health authorities decide you are unable to care for yourself due to poor health, they may appoint a legal guardian (tutor) to look after your interests. The local Italian magistrate (giudice tutelare) will usually try to appoint someone close to you, a spouse or other family member. If this is not possible, they will appoint a qualified professional.

Returning to the UK

Your travel insurance company will normally cover repatriation costs, if you have a valid claim. The Italian authorities cannot fund repatriation, but hospitals might help with the arrangements, if supported by a local charity. We can help you contact travel care services at airports.

See medical repatriation companies in the UK.

Other useful information

UK organisations:

Italian organisations:

  • Italian Ministry of Health: Mental Health Department (in Italian)
  • Federazione Alzheimer Italia (in Italian) – information on Alzheimer disease for patients and families
  • Progetto Itaca – information on prevention, support and rehabilitation for people with mental health problems and their families
  • UNASAM (Italian Associations for Mental Health) (in Italian) – has regional representatives and works for the dignity and rights of people with mental illness and their families
  • LIDAP (in Italian) – online help for those who experience anxiety, agoraphobia and panic attacks
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