Agenais

I know the main electric supply is in red outer casing, quite large too, gas I think is blue but don't quote me on that.  Think that water is black, (ours was in black casing) and waste water grey or white, the rest, not sure  Someone will likely disagree, but electric is definately red and most important if you are digging around.  Telephone  leads tend to drop down to properties from overhead cables

Yes, thanks, I know about the forms etc.  I was not worrying about having to pay up front, in fact the post was rather light hearted and the card is important to me, with the original three year old attestation now being void, as I have been told by CPAM, Mutuelle ad pharmacies alike.  Hence I await the new one.  

Just a cautionary note.  Having recently moved house, I advised my CPAM office and they duly sent out the forms for change of address etc.  They advised me to send in my carte vitale, along with the completed forms, to the new CPAM offices.  Of course, I obliged.  5 weeks down the line and I am still bereft of a new carte vitale and an up to date attestation.  I even popped into the local Assurance Maladie office and they checked on their system to see how things were progressing,  nothing appeared on the screen and the kind lady said, "sorry, you don't exist at the moment"  "OK then, not to worry, pretend I wasn't here, which shouldn't be difficult if I don't exist".  Speaking to the pharmacist and explaining the lack of my carte vitale, he was very understanding and said, "don't take the delay personally, it is normal, not because you are English, the same happens all the time to most people, including myself".   You kind of feel like you are missing a part of you when your carte vitale is not in your wallet, it is after all, an important card.  I would not send it sailing away in the post again, not without a fight. Apparently things have now progressed a little and one office has actually spoken to the other and posted my dossier, so a part of me is in existence once more.  Wether the dossier actually arrives at the new office, remains to be seen.  To be continued............   

"I was chatting to an ex UK nurse on Friday and she said that in the many years she was a nurse it went from bad to worse to terrible. Nurses are now above nursing - they are all graduates - they don't teach personal care or it seems to her hygiene on these courses. Nurses used to clean the wards and Matron would give them hell if they were not spotless. When John was in hospital I went in one day and each man had a little line of paper mache 'bottles' which the urine was gently soaking through by their beds. The Aux, was not about and the nurses were not interested. The man in the side ward opposite John had MRSA and the only thing we ever saw the sink used for was washing the plastic cups that they were give to drink from - I kicked up a fuss about the 'bottles' and they were moved but the urine on the floor was left, not the dark ages, just shortly before we came out." Di, I can totally agree with all of the above.  I retired from nursing, through ill health after 24 years in the NHS.  Sadly, degrees do not always make a nurse and it is high time that they brought back the old training system.  What Sister said was law, the wards were spotless, we scrubbed and cleaned until our hands were raw, but sickness and diarrhoea and MRSA were unheard of and patient care and care of relatives was second to none.  Our morning job as first year nurses was to put the porridge and eggs on for breakfast !  Gosh I feel like I trained with Florence herself  I left nursing just as I was starting some degree modules to keep in line with PREP.  Not a bad idea at all, to keep updated and learn new skills but it has gone a bit too far.  Learning theory is one thing, but there is nothing like hands on experience.  You cannot learn intuition and common sense from any book.  By the time the students eventually appeared onto the wards, the majority didn't have a clue what a patient was, let alone how to treat a live human being who was ill. "they want the toilet, they want a wash, what do I do"??  Oh dear, now your real traning starts!  There are always exceptions and some were great, naturally caring with some common sense.  I have not had hands on experience of a French hospital ward, but, if I do, I will certainly be keeping a close eye.   Ok, I am off the soap box now..............I bet the NHS is breathing a sigh of relief since I left its hallowed wards

HI Jan, I live in the south of the Lot et Garonne and use a GP, just over the border,  in the Lot.........would highly recommend.

I cannot fault our local health care, having suffered cardiac problems from the age of 32, the health care, since moving to France three years ago, has been second to none.  Regular appointments with my GP, all of which last well over 30 minutes, at times to suit, who carries out a comprehensive medical check up at every visit and ecg tests on the spot as needed,  check ups with the cardiologist of choice, again, at times to suit and with no delay, blood tests done, reults in the post within two days, 100% cover for all cardiac problems and treatment, (reciprocal from the UK for life).  As a retired nurse, I sort of know how laboured and frustrating things were in the UK, both as a care provider and a patient,  ie waiting 6 months for a second angioplasty (and that  was on the urgent list).  Fortunately I have not needed another such intervention, but I would imagine it would be done within a very short time if needs be.  This standard and speed of service seems to be the norm when speaking to friends both French and English, certainly in our department.  I find that the local pharmacies are excellent too, efficient, polite and supportive.  The forest of paperwork asside, the health care system must be one of the best in Europe.

A very informative faq list.  I have had people ask " is it safe to drink the water"?  Maybe worth a mention. 

It would be worth you seeking the advice of a French accountant.  They were and continue to be, invaluable in assisting with the setting up of our business here in France.  A little more costly than UK based accountants, but money well spent.  The fact that they speak fairly good English is also a bonus. In the world of French taxation, chambres of commerce and all the usual cotisations only fluency will suffice.  Would happily recommend ours as a first point of call.