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Health

Children's health in Sydney

Australian medicine is excellent, but for a French family on a temporary visa it runs through private insurance: no Medicare, no carte Vitale, and a local family doctor, the GP, who refers you to a paediatrician or hospital. Here is how it works, with verified addresses and the few public lists of French-speaking practitioners.

Verified on 30 October 2026

How the health system works

A public system, Medicare, for citizens and permanent residents, and alongside it a private system that families on temporary visas use through their insurance. Either way, everything starts with the GP.

Good to know

  • Medicare is only open to citizens, permanent residents, certain visas covered by a Ministerial Order and nationals of the eleven countries with a reciprocal agreement, which do not include France. Source
  • Without Medicare, you are a 'private patient' everywhere, including in public hospitals: you pay whatever your insurance does not cover. The government recommends asking for an estimate of costs and out-of-pocket gap before any planned care. Source
  • The GP is the first port of call for children: they treat, prescribe and refer to a paediatrician or specialist with a referral letter. There is no direct-access community paediatrician as in France. Source
  • To keep a link with French social security, you can join the Caisse des Français de l'étranger (CFE), which reimburses on the basis of French rates; top-up cover remains useful given how high hospital costs are in Australia. Source

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Finding a GP and baby check-ups

Here there is no compulsory registration with a practice: you choose a medical centre near home and book online. The local child health record is the Blue Book, and vaccines given in France must be transferred to the Australian register.

Good to know

  • The official healthdirect directory lists GPs, pharmacies and emergency departments by suburb; booking platforms such as HotDoc let you book online, telehealth included. At the first appointment, bring passports, the health insurance card and French health records. Source
  • The Blue Book (My Personal Health Record) is given free at birth in NSW; children born outside NSW who live there are entitled to one too: order it from the NSW Health Better Health Centre. Source
  • Overseas vaccination records are not accepted as they are by childcare centres: an Australian immunisation provider (the GP) assesses them and transfers them to the Australian Immunisation Register, which then issues the Immunisation History Statement required at enrolment. Source
  • For health advice at any hour, the healthdirect line (1800 022 222) answers free 24/7; a maternal and child health nurse also answers on the Pregnancy, Birth and Baby line (1800 882 436) from 7am to midnight. Source

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Emergencies and children's hospitals

A single emergency number, 000, and two large public children's hospitals, in Randwick and Westmead, part of the Sydney Children's Hospitals Network. Their emergency departments see children up to 16, 24/7.

Good to know

  • 000 (Triple Zero) calls ambulance, fire and police. For a child who has swallowed a product or medicine, the NSW Poisons Information Centre answers on 13 11 26; for a mental health emergency, the Mental Health Line answers on 1800 011 511. Source
  • For anything that is not life-threatening (fever, cough, sore throat), the GP or the healthdirect line (1800 022 222) is the right reflex; hospitals remind families that their emergency departments are for serious illness and injury. Source
  • Children's emergency departments care for children from birth to 16; from 16, you go to an adult emergency department. Waiting times at NSW public emergency departments are published online in real time. Source
  • In a genuine emergency involving a French national (serious accident, death, assault), the consulate has a duty officer reachable after 5pm on +61 (0)419 015 294; this number is not for routine procedures. Source

Addresses

  • Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, urgences enfants

    Emergency

    Bâtiment Bilima, niveau B1, accès par Botany Street, Randwick NSW 2031

    The Eastern Suburbs children's hospital, close to Maroubra and Coogee: 24/7 emergency department in the new Bilima Building, with a drop-off zone at the entrance and short-term parking.

    Website Source

  • The Children's Hospital at Westmead, urgences enfants

    Emergency

    Angle de Hawkesbury Road et Helen Street, Westmead NSW 2145

    The state's largest children's hospital, in the west near Parramatta: 24/7 emergency department from newborns to 16-year-olds, 15-minute drop-off zone at the entrance.

    Website Source

  • Royal North Shore Hospital, urgences

    Emergency

    Reserve Road, St Leonards NSW 2065

    The North Shore's major public hospital, with a 24/7 emergency department that also sees children; the closest for families on the Lower North Shore and Northern Beaches.

    Website Source

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French-speaking doctors

In Sydney, public lists of French-speaking practitioners are short. The French consulate's list names only one doctor in New South Wales; the French-language guide Australie Guide Backpackers publishes a list of GPs checked with the practices in July 2026. We only reproduce these two sources; to our knowledge no public list of French-speaking paediatricians, dentists or therapists exists. The choice of practitioner is yours, call the practice before going.

Good to know

  • The consulate's 'Translators and French-speaking professionals' page lists a single doctor for NSW; for French-speaking lawyers, it refers you to the French associations that keep up-to-date lists. Source
  • Australian booking platforms let you filter by language spoken: typing 'French' also brings up Australian doctors who speak French. Associations (Sydney Accueil, FANS) and the school are other good word-of-mouth sources. Source
  • These doctors practise in private clinics: the consultation is paid, then reimbursed according to your health insurance policy.

Addresses

  • Dr Marie-Judith Saw

    General practitioner

    Woollahra

    Doctor on the consulate's list, Woollahra Family Medical Practice, Edgecliff Road, a five-minute walk from Bondi Junction station.

    Languages spoken : FR, EN

    Website Source

  • Dr Gérard Barold

    General practitioner

    Bondi Junction

    GP, Bondi Junction Medical Practice (Westfield Bondi Junction), listed as an accredited doctor of the French Consulate General; online booking via HotDoc.

    Languages spoken : FR, EN

    Source

  • Dr Martyn Baker

    General practitioner

    Coogee

    GP, Coogee Medical Centre, Carr Street, near Coogee beach.

    Languages spoken : FR, EN

    Source

  • Dr Brian Lim

    General practitioner

    Alexandria

    GP, Fountain Street General Practice, south of the city centre.

    Languages spoken : FR, EN

    Source

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Pregnancy and maternity hospitals

Pregnancy starts with the GP, who confirms it, orders the first tests and refers you to the maternity hospital. Without Medicare, you give birth as a private patient: check your insurance policy well before your due date.

Good to know

  • At a public maternity hospital such as the Royal Hospital for Women, booking goes through the GP, who sends an electronic referral; the hospital calls you back within two to three weeks for the first appointment. The GP first confirms the pregnancy and organises the first blood tests. Source
  • Health insurers often apply a waiting period before covering pregnancy: if a baby is planned, check this before signing the policy, and ask the maternity service for a cost estimate.
  • Three vaccines are free in each pregnancy in NSW: whooping cough between 20 and 32 weeks, flu at any trimester and RSV from 28 weeks. Source
  • Government-funded Parental Leave Pay reaches 26 weeks per family for children born from 1 July 2026, subject to residence, work and income tests; employment law also provides up to 12 months of unpaid parental leave after 12 months with the same employer. Source

Addresses

  • Royal Hospital for Women

    Maternity

    Barker Street, Randwick NSW 2031

    The Eastern Suburbs' major public maternity hospital, with neonatal intensive care, next to the Sydney Children's Hospital; a page is dedicated to pregnant women from overseas.

    Website Source

  • Royal Prince Alfred Hospital

    Maternity

    Missenden Road, Camperdown NSW 2050

    Major teaching hospital west of the centre, with maternity and neonatal intensive care; handy for Inner West families.

    Website Source

  • Mater Hospital, maternité privée

    Maternity

    25 Rocklands Road, North Sydney NSW 2060

    Private maternity hospital of the St Vincent's group on the North Shore, with an obstetrician of your choice for the whole pregnancy; private patients, often through insurance.

    Website Source

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Pharmacies and medicines

Chemists are everywhere, often open late in shopping centres, and many common medicines are sold off the shelf. A French prescription, however, will not help you here.

Good to know

  • To find a pharmacy open in the evening, at weekends or on public holidays, use the healthdirect directory, which shows opening hours; the 1800 022 222 line guides you at night. Source
  • Equivalents: paracetamol (Panadol, with children's syrup versions) for Doliprane, ibuprofen (Nurofen for Children) for Advil, 'saline' for saline drops. Spasfon and many French syrups have no equivalent: pack some in your suitcase.
  • You can enter Australia with up to 3 months' supply of personal medicine, in its original packaging, with the prescription or a doctor's letter. Beyond that, have an Australian GP prescribe it: pharmacies do not dispense on overseas prescriptions. Source
  • The PBS, which subsidises prescription medicines, is reserved for people eligible for Medicare: on a temporary visa, you pay the full price and your insurance reimburses according to your policy. Source

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Vaccines: how the schedule differs from France

The NSW schedule resembles the French one, with chickenpox added and one rule that changes everything: without up-to-date vaccines, no childcare enrolment ('No Jab No Play').

Good to know

  • Since 2018, NSW childcare centres can only enrol a child who is up to date with vaccines, has a medical exemption or is on a recognised catch-up schedule; conscientious objection is not accepted. Primary and secondary schools also ask for a vaccination certificate at enrolment. Source
  • Baby: hepatitis B at birth, then hexavalent, pneumococcal and rotavirus at 6 weeks, 4 months and 6 months; at 12 months, meningococcal ACWY, pneumococcal and MMR; at 18 months, MMR-varicella, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis and Hib; at 4 years, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis-polio booster. Source
  • Meningococcal B is free only for Aboriginal children and some at-risk children; it is still recommended for others, on prescription and at your cost. BCG is not part of the schedule. Source
  • Flu vaccination is free every year from 6 months to 5 years. At secondary school: diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis and HPV in Year 7, meningococcal ACWY in Year 10, given at school. Under-20s can catch up on missed vaccines for free. Source
  • Vaccines are given at the GP's, in some health centres and, for older children, at pharmacies. Bring the French health record to the first appointment so the GP can record the doses on the Australian register and adjust the schedule. Source

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These landmarks do not replace the advice of a health professional. In an emergency, call the local emergency number shown above.

A place has closed, something has changed? Tell us: the mums of Sydney will thank you.

Sources for this page

The public pages these landmarks come from. The official website always prevails.

  1. 1 Consulat général de France à Sydney, traducteurs et professionnels francophones
  2. 2 Australie Guide Backpackers, médecins francophones en Australie
  3. 3 Home Affairs, assurance santé des titulaires de visa
  4. 4 Sydney Children's Hospitals Network, informations d'urgence
  5. 5 NSW Health, calendrier vaccinal
  6. 6 NSW Health, vaccins exigés en crèche et à l'école
  7. 7 NSW Health, le Blue Book
  8. 8 Services Australia, congé parental rémunéré

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Verified addresses, official sources, school-year dates: we write when the Sydney guide changes, never more than once a week.

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