Studying abroad

I'm soon going to finish highschool and I really want to study abroad in the UK. I live in Romania and am diagnosed with thalassemia major.
I have tried researching whether or not it's possible for me to go there without worrying about having to pay for my blood transfusions and exjade medication however I didn't manage to find anything regarding this.

Do you folks have any idea whether I'll be able to study abroad over there without having to worry about medical costs? Do you know of any cases of people studying abroad with thalassemia major?

Thanks alot.

Try contacting Whittington Hospital. They should be able to inform you of how coverage works for students.

You can find contact information at
http://www.whittington.nhs.uk/default.asp?c=6662

Hi Robert,

I seldom read the website, and I know should come here more often.
However it seems I passed by when I could offer some help!

Andy is right about Whittington Hospital being a good place where to find good medical treatment,
I myself spent 4 years as a patient there. They have a very good Thalassaemia/Sickle Cell unit, good doctors
and particularly caring nurses... who rarely miss your veins!

Since you are from Romania, which belongs to the European Community, transfusions are free for you in the UK.
You will need to pay for prescriptions, which means you will pay £8.05 per (3) monthly doses of either exjade, desferal, or... anything
else you need.

I'd suggest you to talk to people at http://ukts.org/. They helped me a lot, when I needed info before moving to the UK.
They will contact for you a specialist doctor at any hospital, when you know where you will live. Once you are in the UK,
you will need to register with a General Pratictioner (GP), who is a local doctor, that will refer you to the hospital and specialist
doctor you prefer. If you have some letter explaining your condition from your Romanian doctors will help here in the UK.

Do you know where would you like to study? Which university?

Here is a list of all the hospitals in the UK that offer Thalassaemia medical care (the link opens a PDF).
http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CC4QFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsct.screening.nhs.uk%2Fgetdata.php%3Fid%3D12937&ei=d_3oVJrrPMiX7AbJvYGIBA&usg=AFQjCNET8fdKPPX_R1k042Nc0JGsqgb2og&sig2=0gMhYTP-_iFdv1Gob-KCRQ&bvm=bv.86475890,d.ZGU

At the moment, I live in Coventry and also here there's an hospital with high standards of care.

If you need more info, don't hesitate to ask.

Cheers,
Roberto

Thanks for your help, Algol and Andy.

You really have brought some great news as I was prepared for the possibility that I may not be able to study abroad because of this.
I have yet to decide which university I'm going to attend, but i'm probably going to decide very soon.
I'm considering going to the Whittington Hospital regardless of whether my university will be in London, since I want the best medical care there is.

So Roberto, did you also study abroad there? How did you adapt in the first months?

I felt the same like you, but I soon realised that good people founded the Thalassemia Society UK
that is very good at defending patient's rights and helping them out.

I moved to the UK for my PhD and the university was in a town not far away from north London,
that's why I went to the Whittington Hospital that is the nearest to where I used to live.
Keep in mind that if you go to other cities, you won't need to go to London for medical assistance.
There is a protocol for the care of Thalassaemia, which all the hospitals stick to, so you don't need to worry about it.

You'll have initial difficulties due to the language, climate, and food...
but that is part of the game, and you will soon adapt to the new life.