The Health System
| Purpose | Romanian Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Casa Națională de Asigurări de Sănătate — National Health Insurance House. | CNAS | The public health insurance system. Your access to free public healthcare depends on being insured through CNAS. |
| Cod Numeric Personal — your 13-digit national identification number, similar to a national insurance number. | CNP | Required for public health services, though ARAS does not require it. |
| family doctor / GP. | Medic de familie | Your assigned primary care doctor. Not everyone in Romania has one; finding and registering with a medic de familie is important for accessing the public system. |
| referral. | Trimitere | Required to see a specialist (specialist) through the public system. Without a trimitere, you typically cannot access outpatient specialist care for free. |
| outpatient department. | Ambulatoriu | Where you attend for non-emergency specialist consultations. |
| emergency department / A&E. | Camera de Gardă | Open 24 hours. Where you go for PEP. |
| Infectious Diseases hospital. | Spital de Boli Infecțioase | Matei Balș and Victor Babeș are both boli infecțioase hospitals. |
| pharmacy / chemist. | Farmacie | Public pharmacies dispense prescriptions. Hospital pharmacy (farmacie de spital) is where PrEP is dispensed. |
Sexual Health and Testing
| Purpose | Romanian Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| HIV (same as English; pronounced "hah-ee-veh" in Romanian) | HIV | |
| AIDS (Sindromul Imunodeficienței Dobândite) | SIDA | |
| Boală cu Transmitere Sexuală — sexually transmitted disease (older term). | BTS | More current: IST — Infecție Sexuală Transmisibilă (STI). |
| Post-Expunere Profilaxie — PEP (Post-Exposure Prophylaxis). | PPE | Both "PPE" and "PEP" are understood by healthcare workers. |
| Profilaxie Pre-Expunere — same concept as in English | PrEP | |
| gonorrhoea | Gonoree | |
| chlamydia (same word) | Chlamydia | |
| syphilis | Sifilis | |
| hepatitis | Hepatită | |
| blood/lab tests | Analize | |
| result | Rezultat | |
| prescription | Prescripție / Rețetă |
Swab Terms — Three-Site Testing
| Purpose | Romanian Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| swab / smear (the sample type) | Exsudat | |
| throat swab. | Exsudat faringian | For gonorrhoea and chlamydia in the throat. You may also hear tampon faringian. |
| rectal swab. | Exsudat anal** or **exsudat rectal | For gonorrhoea and chlamydia in the rectum. |
| urethral swab. | Exsudat uretral | For gonorrhoea and chlamydia in the urethra. |
| urine sample. | Probă de urină | Not sufficient on its own for a complete STI screen — it will miss throat and rectal infections. |
Key Phrases
| Purpose | Romanian Term |
|---|---|
| Do you speak English? | Nu vorbesc bine românește — există cineva care vorbește engleză? |
| Full STI screen — throat, anal, and urethral swabs | Vreau să fac un screening complet pentru IST, inclusiv exsudat faringian, anal și uretral. |
| Clinical context: I have receptive anal and oral sex regularly | Am relații sexuale anale receptive și orale în mod regulat. |
| Anonymous HIV test | Vreau un test anonim pentru HIV. |
| I'm on PrEP — need my three-month monitoring | Sunt pe PrEP. Am nevoie de consultație de monitorizare trimestrială. |
| I want to start PrEP | Vreau să încep PrEP. Am factori de risc ridicat. |
| HIV exposure — I need PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis) | Am avut un contact sexual cu risc de HIV și am nevoie de profilaxie post-expunere (PPE). |
| PEP — it was less than 72 hours ago | Am nevoie de PEP pentru HIV. A fost acum mai puțin de 72 de ore. |
| Vaccine — Mpox / hepatitis A / hepatitis B | Aș vrea să mă vaccinez împotriva Mpox / hepatitei A / hepatitei B. |
| I have an EHIC card | Am cardul european de asigurări de sănătate (CEASS). |
| I need help | Am nevoie de ajutor! |
| Call an ambulance | Chemați o ambulanță! |
Emergency Numbers
| Number | Service |
|---|---|
| 112 | Emergency services (ambulance, police, fire) |
| 021 252 43 70 | ARAS Checkpoint (Bucharest) |
| 021 201 09 80 | Matei Balș Camera de Gardă (Bucharest) |