Ixtapa Zihuatanejo - Health, Emergencies, Hospitals, Advise about water, etc.

If by chance you get sick during your stay in our destination, you must be aware that all hotels have doctors.

Most of the big hotels have an "in-house" doctor on pre-established hours and also available "on-call" 24 hours in case of an emergency or urgent consultation. Medium to small hotels have doctors "on call" that will come and treat you right away. You will be charged for their services. Night services have a surcharge. The majority of hotel's doctors are bilingual (Spanish-English)

Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo has three hospitals, Hospital IMSS (operated by the Social Security Institute), Hospital General (operated by the State Government Health Department) and Hospital Naval (operated by the Mexican Navy). All of them will treat tourists in case of any eventuality or sickness.

In Zihuatanejo there is a Private Clinic for Dialysis that offer services to the general public.

"Hospital General" (Zihuatanejo) has Dialysis equipment. "Hospital Naval" (Ixtapa) has a Hyperbaric Chamber for emergencies. Both give service to visitors and tourists.

Also, we have a few Private Clinics and Hospitals with specialists in many branches and Doctor's Offices for private practice and consultations for general medicine, gastroenterology, traumatology, gynecology, cardiology, pediatrics, dermatology, ophthalmology, etc.

Additionally, many of the pharmacies in our towns have Physician Offices with graduated doctors that offer basic consultations with a charge of $35.00 to $60.00 pesos (approx. US$2.50 to US$5.00)

If you ever need an ambulance with urgency, dial 911 from any fixed phone or cell phone. No phone card required to make these calls from public phones.

Beside the Red Cross and Civil Protection Department ambulances, we also have Private Ambulances. If required, Air Ambulance services are readily available for domestic and international transportation of sick persons.

In Zihuatanejo we have a local clinic of the Mexican Red Cross for emergencies and general practice.

Hospitals...

	HOSPITAL I.M.S.S. - Paseo de Zihuatanejo Ote #sn, Zihuatanejo. 554-4822
	HOSPITAL GENERAL - H. Colegio Militar esq. Mar Muerto, Zihuatanejo. 554-3650 & 554-3848
	HOSPITAL NAVAL - Paseo del Palmar #sn, Ixtapa. 553-0553
	CRUZ ROJA MEXICANA - (Mexican Red Cross) Av. Las Huertas #116, Zihuatanejo. 554-2009 Emergency clinic, not for hospitalization

We hope you will never require the use of these medical services, but if the need arises, they are all available for your care and safety.

Many things are said about the quality of city water in Mexico; some are true, but also some are false. In Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo the city water is treated with chlorine gas to the international standard levels and according to the guidelines of the Comision Nacional del Agua (National Water Commission; a Federal Bureau for the Exploitation and Quality of water)

Additionally, most of the hotels in Ixtapa and many in Zihuatanejo will do a second in-house treatment based in ultraviolet rays and sediments filtration, to assure you a good quality of potable water. Watch for signs that will advice you that the faucet water is 100% drinkable or that will tell you where you can find the treated water. If in doubt, the best thing is to ask!

If drinkable water is your concern... you should know that most restaurants and bars sell bottle water. Also, you can buy them at supermarkets and convenient stores from bottles of 300ml (10 fl. oz.) to jugs of 20 liters (5 gallons). Many hotels, even without restaurants on their premises, will have them for sell to their guests too.

In regard to raw vegetables, most restaurants will treat them with commercial anti-germs food solutions before cooking or before preparation of fresh salads. Again, if in doubt, ask!. Don't miss the chance to taste one of our delicious tropical salads just because somebody told you not to eat raw vegetables while in Mexico. Ask the waiter how they treat them, and then decide for yourself.

We're sure you have heard about Moctezuma's Revenge and this condition has always been blamed to the water and vegetables. In reality, most of the time, the cause is the change of food and habitat of the tourist. When you come to Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo you will indulge in very spicy foods (not necessarily spicy-hot), lots of sea foods and some extra beers, tequilas and cocktails from the start. Many times this will upset your stomach because it's very far away from your regular diet and specially in a hot climate like ours. So take it easy on the food and drinks for the first few days and you'll be okay for your whole vacation. Say "no-no" to Moctezuma .

If you present a minor case of diarrhea you can take "Pepto-Bismol"® or "Lomotil"® that are pills and is a little bit stronger. No prescription required and follow pharmacist's instructions, otherwise consult a doctor.

	Nonetheless... SALUD AMIGO !!!

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