Live abroad
Finding Quality Healthcare as an Expat in Portugal: My TejoMed Experience
Destinations
Joanna Horanin
Current condition
Weather in Portugal
Sunny
Temperature
Feels like 15.3℃ 😞
Air quality index
Good
Last updated at 26/11/2025, 16:45
Hi, I'm Joanna, the author of The Blond Travels. In the worlds of Thailand and Portugal, I feel like a fish in water - and it's no coincidence! I've been exploring Thailand for over a decade, and I've settled in Portugal for 6 years now. My mission is to support Dreamers - just like you - in discovering these fascinating countries and helping those in love with them find their own place on Earth, preferably for good! Let's uncover these unique corners of the world together.
Time. Time is precious, and you know what’s even more valuable? Health. Staying fit and healthy is an important part of my life, even more so after crossing the magic 40. I keep a strict exercise regime, eat healthily, and do my health check-ups every two years. Since I’ve been living in Portugal, the latter has been a challenge.
Not only has finding an English-speaking doctor in Lisbon been difficult, but once I found someone, it turned out that they didn’t really listen to my concerns and couldn’t give me more than 15 minutes of their time. Despite having access to private healthcare, I was stuck in queues and having difficulty making appointments with nearly every doctor I wanted to see. I dreamed of being able to see a doctor for longer than a few minutes and having all the tests done in a shorter amount of time.
Like many expats in Portugal, I finally just shrugged my shoulders and gave up-“it is what it is,” I said to myself, and decided to do my best when it came to check-ups and my health. Meanwhile, I was always looking for solutions that could make the whole situation better.
One evening I was scrolling through Instagram (as you do when you finish work) and stumbled upon an ad. I stopped because it seemed like an advertisement for something I could potentially be interested in. At first, I wasn’t really sure what it was about. “Concierge Doctor in Portugal”? I thought it was rather strange. I had never heard about it before. But then, I started digging and found out more about it. I was intrigued. Maybe this was the solution! I got in touch with TejoMed and decided to give it a go.
TejoMed is a premium healthcare provider in Portugal. It provides you with your dedicated GP, who can help you not only when you really need to see a doctor, but also guides you through your check-ups and helps you manage your health. Because you always see the same doctor, you establish a personal connection and relationship with them, which really makes a difference in the long term. Each doctor sees less patients, so you have better access – you can make same or next-day sick visits, appointments start on time, and are long. You even also have direct access to your doctor and care team and can call or email anytime (24/7). It’s the perfect solution for people who like to be proactive about their health and want to see a specialist not only when it’s really needed, but also to prevent certain conditions and diseases.
In this article, I’m going to give you the details about my experience with TejoMed. I am going to be as honest as possible, so you can see all the pros and cons of their services. I’m hoping that this post will help you manage your own health and find the best healthcare solution in Portugal.
Before we start -please be informed that this article was created in collaboration with TejoMed. However, I’m always honest with my readers, so I’m going to write a very honest review.
The Search for Quality Expat Healthcare in Portugal
All residents in Portugal can use the public healthcare system (SNS). Registration is free and after that you can go to public hospitals and surgeries. All you need is your NIF number and a confirmation of residency. Some visits cost you as little as 7 euros. The problem is that the system is overburdened. While Portugal graduates many doctors, there are not enough of them and not enough nurses staying around. The waiting times at hospitals are really long. Some cities have had to close down wards because there’s no staff.
Moving to Portugal? Bordr.io takes care of all the paperwork, so you can focus on enjoying your new life. Get your NIF, open a bank account, file your tax return and more, all in one place.
Having your own GP is not that common in Portugal. Yes, there’s such a concept as promised by the government, but it takes a very long time for you to be assigned to one. I never applied for it as I thought there was no point, but some of my friends have been waiting for more than two years to have one. This means I usually go to private hospitals, but without a dedicated doctor who actually knows me, my test results and health history are scattered across different hospitals and surgeries and never properly updated. Most doctors are seeing 20-30 patients a day, resulting in rushed 15 visits and burnt-out doctors.
The Language Barrier
What makes things even more challenging is finding an English-speaking doctor in Lisbon or other bigger cities. Public healthcare doesn’t require their doctors to have language skills – they’re there to see a lot of patients each day and keep everything running. I once went to the hospital during Covid with a really bad cough. I hadn’t been in Portugal for long, so my Portuguese was very basic. After waiting in line for three hours, when I finally got in, the doctor didn’t speak any English, so we had to use Google Translate. This was fine in that particular case since I wasn’t seriously ill, but I’m not sure how it would have worked if it had been something more serious.
The Prevention Problem
Prevention is also something that’s important to me. From a very early age, my parents taught me to do regular tests, and it’s something I consider really important. I realize that in some countries this is neglected. For example, when I lived in the UK, I tried to get a referral for a comprehensive checkup and blood tests from my GP. When I asked her for it, she looked at me seriously and asked if I was suspecting that I had HIV -it wasn’t clear to her why I wanted to do it. After that, I went to Poland (my home country) to do a check-up, and after I moved to Thailand, I did it there once a year.
In Portugal, prevention exists and it’s easier to do check-ups than it is in the UK, but it’s still something that doctors don’t emphasize that much. You just need to be aware of these things and ask for them in order to have them done regularly.
Private Insurance: Not Always the Solution
A lot of expats in Portugal choose to buy private medical insurance, or they get it through work – it’s a very popular benefit here. I thought that with it, I could easily see a GP or a specialist, but that didn’t change things for me that much. I still don’t have a GP. If I need to see someone urgently, I go to A&E at the nearest public hospital. When I need to do a check-up, I go to my gynecologist and ask for some blood tests to be done. He usually doesn’t ask me any questions, just gives me the referral and off I go. I then need to come back to check the results with him, and because he’s very busy, doing the tests and having the follow-up consultations takes me six months.
As you can see, healthcare in Portugal for expats isn’t an easy thing to sort out. The good news? There are some innovative services emerging that can help you get the best possible care.
Why I Chose TejoMed
As mentioned before, TejoMed is a premium membership-based family medicine clinic in Portugal, specializing in providing 24/7 concierge doctor services to its members.
What Is a Concierge Doctor?
First, I didn’t know what “concierge doctor” meant. It sounded fancy. Is it a doctor that makes your appointments with other doctors? Is it like WebMD that answers your questions and tells you that it’s definitely nothing serious, but it’s best to get it checked? Is it a doctor who reminds you about your medications? I had no idea. This concept is quite foreign in Europe.
You might not know it either, so let me explain. A concierge doctor is your personal GP -a person who is available to you, sees you on a regular basis, knows everything about you, can prescribe the medications you need, and can send you for check-ups and tests. You can reach the doctor and their staff by calling and emailing – there is even a direct line if you need to contact a doctor urgently. The visits are always on time and you never have to queue in hospitals. They also speak English (and Portuguese), so there’s never any stress connected with not understanding what needs to be done or how the healthcare system works here. It’s a premium healthcare model that’s new to Portugal, but very popular in the United States.
How TejoMed Works
TejoMed is the first company here that provides this type of service. It’s membership-based, and for your monthly fee you get a personal approach to your health. Your dedicated doctor knows everything about you. Their doctors have a limited number of patients, so they can always see you or talk to you on the phone. You can call them or email them 24/7, and sick visit appointments are available the same or the next day.
What appealed to me about TejoMed were the same-day sick visits and the possibility of seeing the doctor quickly. I really wanted to do my annual check-up, see if everything was OK, and have someone explain to me in detail what I need to do and how I need to take care of myself.
Important Note About Coverage
This is not private medical insurance, however. This is an additional service you get from TejoMed to manage your health and it complements your insurance. The doctors can refer you for tests and to specialists (which are mostly covered by insurance), but they do not perform all services themselves, so you need to pay for additional tests and specialists, or have private medical insurance in Portugal that covers everything else.
My First Appointment Experience
My First TejoMed Appointment
I had my first appointment with TejoMed in September 2025. I contacted them through their website, filled out a short form, and made an online appointment with a TejoMed Advisor. A phone call was available too, but I always prefer to do it through Google Meet or Zoom.
Inês, (a TejoMed co-founder from Portugal), who I spoke to, was very kind and helpful. She asked me a little bit about myself, my history, and how I manage my health. We also discussed healthcare and private medical care in Portugal. I was honest and said that overall I thought the SNS was great, but I’d rather pay a bit more and have quicker access to doctors.
Inês explained in detail what a concierge doctor was and how the service worked. She provisionally made an appointment for me with my assigned TejoMed GP. After the meeting, I was sent a very long form which I had to fill in before the appointment. It included questions about everything -from my lifestyle, through my history, to any concerns I had. It took me quite a long time to fill that out, but I had a feeling that it really addressed my needs. When completing the survey, I realized that I really had a lot of things I wanted to discuss with a healthcare professional.
The Difference from Traditional Private Care
Private medical care in Portugal gives you a chance to see someone, but it’s always very automatic. I have been to many doctors here and they usually check only the things you want them to check, never going outside of those parameters. You get to spend 10-15 minutes with them and then you’re on your own. Filling out the TejoMed form, I started looking forward to my visit with my doctor.
After my call with Inês, I was sent reminders about the visit. In the emails I had the option to reschedule or cancel the appointment, even a day before. I thought that was pretty good and gave me flexibility if I needed it. Everything was also done in English, which was a huge plus.
Pro Tip: When you move to Portugal, the very first thing you need to do is to get a NIF number and a confirmation of residency. After that, you can go to your Centro de Saudé and apply for your SNS number, which will help you use the medical services.
The Appointment Day
I was booked for an appointment with Dr. Ares Rigas in a clinic in Saldanha, near the very center of Lisbon and close to the metro station. I showed up 10 minutes early. The place was very modern, with minimalistic design. It was clean and everyone working there was very professional and polite. The receptionists spoke fluent English, so I didn’t even get to practice my Portuguese!
TejoMed claims that their appointments are always on time. Here I wasn’t disappointed either. Dr. Ares showed up on the dot and made me feel at ease straight away. His office was quiet and gave us the privacy to talk freely. I was supposed to have a 90-minute meeting with him, but we ended up talking for 2 hours! He listened patiently, asked follow-up questions, and not once did he seem like I was boring or being ridiculous. We addressed all my health issues and concerns. He also checked my vitals, my weight, my muscle density, and BMI. They have an in-office inBody body composition scan & body fat analyzer, which is very interesting. But what I was really astonished by was that he actually suggested some tests that I had wanted to do and that all other doctors had dismissed my requests before.
A Holistic Approach
Dr. Ares seemed to approach health holistically. He didn’t only look at my physical health, but also at my mental health, and we talked about my stress levels and other issues I had going on in my life. His English was immaculate as well. I never had any doubts about what he was talking about and I could talk freely, at my own pace.
At the end of my 2-hour appointment, I was sure that I had talked about everything regarding my health and I was fully understood and listened to. I got a whole list of biomarker, longevity, and blood tests to do and then we made an appointment for November to see how I was doing.
What Makes TejoMed Different
TejoMed is definitely something that is needed in Portugal. First of all, it gives you a chance to see a doctor that you have a relationship with. There are no appointments with random healthcare professionals who know nothing about you. You feel safer and you’re assured that someone is actually taking care of you.
Preventive medicine in Portugal is not common, and even younger doctors are not trained to emphasize it. This is what makes TejoMed different, their staff actually cares about your health and they want you to be well, taking a root cause and functional medicine approach. I feel that they understand how important it is to prevent diseases, not just cure them. That’s why they provide you with regular check-ups.
A concierge doctor in Portugal is also all about easy access to the services you pay for. You can contact your doctor or the TejoMed staff by email or phone call and get a next-day sick visit. This is so much better than waiting in lines at public hospitals.
And for those of you who don’t speak Portuguese, this is the perfect service, especially when you first arrive here.
The Practical Side: Value
Here are the costs of TejoMed Membership:
Membership structure and pricing:
TejoMed tailors its membership structure to each patient, so pricing is customized. If you are interested, the easiest way to find out more is to contact them for details.
What’s included?
So what exactly do you get with a TejoMed membership? Here are the main services and benefits that make this different from both public healthcare and traditional private clinics:
- Dedicated Doctor with Limited Patient Panel: Each TejoMed doctor manages only a small number of patients. This ensures they actually know you and can spend proper time with you.
- Comprehensive Annual Check-Up: A detailed exam that goes well beyond the usual quick physical. It includes advanced diagnostics, screenings, longevity tests, and lifestyle evaluation to get a complete picture of your health.
- Personalized Wellness Plan: Based on your results and discussions with your doctor, you receive a tailored plan to help you prevent illness, improve fitness, and manage long-term health goals.
- Longer Appointment Times: Standard visits are significantly longer than traditional GP visits, giving time to really dive into your concerns without rushing. The checkup lasts up to 90 min (or sometimes longer in my case).
- Same-Day or Next-Day Sick Visits: If you need urgent care, you can see your doctor quickly without waiting weeks or months.
- Appointments That Start on Time: No more sitting in waiting rooms for hours. Schedules are respected and delays are rare.
- 24/7 Access to Your Doctor: You can call or email your doctor or the care team at any time, with the ability to connect with a doctor 24/7 for urgent issues.
- Secure Access to Medical Records: Through TejoMed’s patient portal, you can view and share your records easily, even if you are seeing other providers.
- Virtual Visits: If you are traveling or simply prefer not to come into the clinic, online appointments are available when clinically appropriate.
- Travel Support: Even when abroad, you can stay in touch with your doctor for continuous care across time zones.
Insurance considerations
As mentioned before – TejoMed is not a private medical insurance. To have full coverage for tests and specialists, it is recommended that you have either a private policy, or be prepared to use government services. Here you will find a list of available options of healthcare in Portugal.
Who Should Consider TejoMed
TejoMed membership will be great for anyone that looks after their health and prefers to prevent rather than cure. If you’re like me – you do your annual check ups and you want to be as healthy as possible – this is definitely for you!
It will be especially suitable for expats looking for a personal approach, especially if you’re just moving here and don’t speak Portuguese, or it’s hard for you to understand how healthcare in Portugal works.
For families with children, TejoMed can be a lifesaver. Having one doctor who knows your family’s health history and can be reached directly for urgent concerns gives parents real peace of mind. It also means sick visits can be arranged quickly without long waits, which is important when you have little ones.
For biohackers and those interested in longevity, TejoMed offers a model of care that feels like it was built for you. With advanced diagnostics, personalized wellness plans, and doctors who focus on prevention and optimization, you can actively track and improve your long-term health instead of just reacting when something goes wrong.
For busy executives and professionals, the value is in time saved. Same-day appointments, visits that start on time, and direct access to your doctor mean no wasted hours in waiting rooms or on hold with call centers. You get the care you need, when you need it, so you can focus on your work and life without sacrificing your health.
Finally, this is a service for busy people, who can’t waste their time in queues at the public hospitals and surgeries and who want to see their doctor fast, without any problems.
Areas for Improvement
I promised you an honest review and I’m going to keep my word here. I’ll tell you what I’d improve.
First of all, let me assure you that TejoMed kept their side of the bargain -it was a smooth registration process, Dr. Ares was amazing, everything was on time, and I really had a very long, honest, and insightful conversation. I felt that it was totally worth it!
My suggestion for improvement doesn’t really concern TejoMed per se, but rather something I’d like to see in Portugal in the future.
The “One-Stop” Healthcare Model
I lived in Thailand for a few years and I go back there every year. I have gone for my check-ups there a couple of times and paid for everything myself. In my favorite hospital -RAM in Chiang Mai – you get a check-up in one day. You don’t even need to register in advance. You can arrive at 8am, they do all the tests imaginable, including mammograms and heart monitoring, and you’re out by 12pm. You even get lunch! Then, the staff asks you to come back at 3pm to see a doctor, who explains some of the test results that have already come in. The rest you get by email. It’s really amazing and it costs about 500 euros.
This is what I’d like to see in Portugal, and given that my appointment was in a clinic that runs some diagnostic tests, maybe it would be a good idea to add an option for doing some basic blood work on-site? A fee could be added on top of the membership, or it could be included in the membership already.
This is just something I think is missing in Portugal, and I’m sure many expats would welcome a service like this.
After my experience with TejoMed, I can honestly say that it’s exactly what I was looking for as an expat in Portugal. For the first time since moving here, I have a doctor who actually knows me, listens to my concerns, and takes a proactive approach to my health. The convenience of same-day appointments, English-speaking staff, and 24/7 access gives me the peace of mind I’ve been missing.
Is it more expensive than traditional healthcare options? Yes. But when I think about the time I’ve wasted sitting in hospital queues, the frustration of language barriers, and the stress of not having proper continuity of care, the investment feels completely justified.
If you’re an expat in Portugal who values your time and health, and you’re tired of the challenges that come with navigating the healthcare system here, TejoMed might be exactly what you need. It’s not just about convenience – it’s about finally having a healthcare experience that puts you and your wellbeing first.
For me, that’s worth every euro.