No medication, only advice?

After a visit to the general practitioner (huisarts), you may get no medication, even if you have been given a diagnosis. This can be frustrating if you are used to doctors always prescribing something. In the Netherlands, however, it is common for mild complaints to advise rest and time, together with paracetamol to ease the discomfort. If the complaints continue, you are advised to come back for a follow-up appointment.

In some cases it is important to wait and see whether the complaints get better on their own, without the need for immediate medical intervention.
If, for example, you use too many antibiotics, the bacteria in your body can become insensitive to those medicines. This can lead to resistance. That means your body responds less well to medication.

Biggest difference: In many other countries medication is prescribed right away for the slightest complaint, while in the Netherlands the choice is often for a more patient approach, in which our body fights the illness itself. 🛋️