Can an online doctor order lab tests? How our local laboratory partnerships work
Yes, an online doctor can order lab tests. During a TravelDoctores video consultation, our physicians can request blood tests, urine tests and other laboratory studies when your case needs them, and you can complete them at a partner laboratory close to where you’re staying. Your doctor then reviews the results with you and confirms the diagnosis or adjusts your treatment. This is one of the ways we’re building telemedicine that goes beyond the video call.
The short version: we’re partnering with local clinical laboratories in the countries where we operate. That gives our physicians one more diagnostic tool, helps them confirm what a video consultation suggests, and makes it possible to follow patients over time, even when they’re far from home.
Why does a telemedicine diagnosis sometimes need a lab test?
Most health problems travellers face can be resolved in a well-conducted video consultation. A careful clinical history, the right questions and a visual assessment are often enough to diagnose and treat a sore throat, a skin reaction or a mild stomach upset with confidence.
There are cases, however, where the same symptoms can have several causes and each one needs a different treatment. A fever after a trip to a tropical region, a urinary infection that keeps coming back, diarrhoea that won’t settle or tiredness that has lasted for weeks are good examples. In those situations, a lab result turns a well-founded clinical suspicion into a confirmed diagnosis. It also helps avoid unnecessary treatments, such as antibiotics prescribed “just in case”, which matters for the patient and for public health.
How does it work, from video consultation to lab results?
Everything starts with a normal consultation. If the doctor considers that a test will genuinely change the diagnosis or the treatment, they issue a laboratory request during the call and explain which tests you need and why. Requests are issued by a physician licensed in the country where you are, which is what local laboratories generally require.
You then go to one of our partner laboratories, or any other laboratory you prefer, to have the sample taken. Once the report is ready, you share it with your TravelDoctores physician, who reviews it with you, explains what the numbers mean in plain language and decides the next step: starting a treatment, adjusting one, or referring you for in-person care if the results call for it.
What lab tests can a TravelDoctores doctor request?
The exact list depends on each laboratory and country, but these are among the tests our physicians request most often:
Lab tests are not for emergencies: if you have chest pain, difficulty breathing, signs of a stroke, heavy bleeding or a high fever with confusion, don’t wait for a consultation or a test. Call your local emergency number (112 in the EU) or go to the nearest emergency department.
How do lab tests help with ongoing care abroad?
Diagnosis is only half of the story. Many of our patients are expats and digital nomads who spend months in the same place, and some of them live with a chronic condition such as diabetes, hypothyroidism or high cholesterol. For them, the hardest part of living abroad is often not getting sick, but keeping their usual follow-up going without a regular doctor nearby.
Having access to local laboratories changes that. A physician can request periodic control tests, check whether a treatment is working and adjust a dose based on real data rather than on symptoms alone. The same applies to treatments that need monitoring from the start, where a baseline blood test and a follow-up a few weeks later make the treatment safer. The result is continuity of care that doesn’t stop because you changed city or country.
Not sure whether you need a lab test?
Start with a video consultation. A licensed doctor will tell you if a test is needed and where you can get it done nearby.
Do I have to use a partner laboratory?
No. You’re always free to do your tests at whichever laboratory you prefer, and your doctor will review the results just the same. Partner laboratories are simply a convenient option: they already know how our physicians work, which usually makes the process faster and easier, especially if you don’t speak the local language or don’t know the city well. Our doctors request tests only when they are clinically justified, never as a routine.
Where are our laboratory partnerships available?
We already work with partner laboratories in several of the countries where TravelDoctores operates, and the network keeps growing as we expand. If you’d like to know whether there is a partner laboratory near you, just ask us on WhatsApp or mention it during your consultation.
If you run a clinical laboratory and share our goal of making healthcare simpler for international patients, we’d be glad to talk. You can write to us at info@traveldoctores.com.
Why we’re building this network
When I started TravelDoctores, the goal was simple: that anyone far from home could talk to a licensed doctor quickly, in their language, without getting lost in an unfamiliar health system. Partnering with local laboratories is the natural next step. It gives our physicians a tool they use every day in their in-person practice, and it gives our patients a more accurate diagnosis and real follow-up, wherever they are.
Dr. RossiPhysician and founder, TravelDoctores
Frequently asked questions
Yes. A TravelDoctores physician can request blood tests, urine tests and other laboratory studies during a video consultation when they are clinically needed. You complete them at a local laboratory and share the results with your doctor for review.
Requests are issued by a physician licensed in the country where you are having the consultation, which is what local laboratories generally require. Partner laboratories already know our process, which makes the visit faster and simpler.
No. Lab tests are paid separately, directly to the laboratory, and prices depend on the test, the lab and the country. Some travel or international health insurance policies may reimburse them, so it’s worth checking yours.
No. You’re always free to use any laboratory you prefer. Partner laboratories are simply a convenient option because they already work with our physicians.
You receive the report from the laboratory and share it with your TravelDoctores physician, who reviews it with you, explains what it means and adjusts the diagnosis or treatment if needed.
Yes. For people staying abroad for weeks or months, periodic lab tests let a physician keep monitoring conditions such as diabetes, thyroid disease or high cholesterol, and check how a treatment is working, without interrupting care because you changed countries.
Talk to a licensed doctor today
Video consultation · Lab tests when you need them · Follow-up wherever you are
