A trip to the pharmacy
So you’re in Italy and you’re not feeling well. Or you’ve been eaten alive by mosquitos and need something to deal with the itch. You wore the wrong shoes and now you have a huge blister. Maybe you ate too much and have indigestion. Or a headache. Or a pimple.
Nobody wants to take time out of their vacation to deal with this kind of stuff, but it happens. And when these things come up you’re going to find yourself at the Italian pharmacy, in farmacia.
First things first, you have to find one. Which shouldn’t be that difficult as they are all marked with the same signage – a green cross.
Before you enter, I recommend that you use google translate or reverso.net to look up a few words relating to your issue. In many pharmacies in Italy you will find someone who speaks English, but not in all of them. Or have a photo handy of what you’re looking for. This will help you get what you need faster.
Next, enter the pharmacy and check out the situation. There may be a line or there may be a number system. Look for the ticket machine that spits out a number and take one if it’s available. If not, then you’ll join the line. If the line seems rather unformed, you can ask ‘chi è l’ultimo?’ or ‘who is last?’ – which means it’s your turn after that person.
You’re not going to find over the counter type drugs (ibuprofen, acetaminophen etc.) on the shelves to browse as is normal for instance in the U.S. You may instead find lots of sunscreen, cosmetics, diapers, sanitary items, shampoo, health foods and possibly bandaids.
For everything else you’ll need to explain your problem to the nice pharmacist who may or may not speak English (even if you have diarrhea, but that’s another story for another day). Just remember they want to help you.
As for prescription medications, you should bring what you need with you. In some emergency cases you may be able to get a prescription filled if the drug is available in the EU, but it may not be and it is not simple to do even if the drug is available.
There will be a 24 hour pharmacy in many towns, but it will not always be the same one. There is a rotation for pharmacies to be open 24 hours. If you are looking for one, you can find a sign by the door of all pharmacies in town that says “Farmacia a turno” and has a list of which pharmacy will be open 24 hours on any given weekend. Also Lloyd’s pharmacies are a large chain and may be open 24 hours.
I hope you don’t need to even enter a pharmacy when you’re on vacation, but if you do I hope this helps!
Some useful words to know at the pharmacy:
il cerotto = bandaid
l’antistaminico = antihistamine
l’ibuprofene = ibuprofen
il paracetamolo = acetaminophen
l’aspirina = aspirin
l’idrocortisone = hyrdocortisone
mal di testa = headache
mal di stomaco = stomachache
mal di gola = sore throat
l’indigestione = indigestion
la febbre = fever
le tosse = a cough
una storta della caviglia = a sprained ankle
la vescica = blister
l’eruzione cutanea = rash
il brufolo = a pimple
punture di insetti = insect bites