Advisory Centres
Advisory centres are run by Local Health Authorities; in order to find information about your nearest advisory centre, you can go to your nearest Local Health Authority offices.
Advisory centres protect the most vulnerable groups of people. Different experts, such as psychologists, sociologists, social workers, gynaecologists and paediatricians, work with the aim of protecting the patient's psychophysical health. You do not need to be referred by your GP, you can choose to visit the centre at any time, and this service is free. To book an appointment you will need to call the centre, or make an appointment in person with a centre receptionist.
There are different kinds of advisory centres which specialise in helping different groups of patients. These centres are available for families, for children and for young people. Advisory centres for families offer preventative medicine and assistance with female and family health, offering assistance, for example, with the following cases:
assistance during pregnancy
birth courses
assistance after the birth and during breast-feeding
contraception
termination of a pregnancy
assistance during the menopause
prevention of female cancers
obligatory immunisations
consultations on psychological and social problems
Advisory centres for children support children and their parents, and offer advice and care from a paediatrician, including, depending on the individual centre, the following services:
advice on health and healthy living
massage courses for children
Advisory centres for young people offer services for young people aged between fourteen and twenty-one. The experts who work in these centres are mainly gynaecologists, social workers, educationalists, psychologists and neuro-psychiatrists. These centres aim at helping adolescents to overcome a difficult time in their life. The main services offered in these centres are:
help for young people
support with psychological problems and relationship difficulties
information on sexuality and sex
information on coping with social relationships at school and in the family
