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Internal medicine physician in Latvia

Where to get treatment, how to verify certification, what this doctor does

An internal medicine physician helps when you have several complaints or problems affecting more than one organ, such as the heart, lungs and metabolism together. The doctor pulls the whole picture together and tells you whether, and which, specialist to see next.

The consultation happens over video, so it works the same in Riga, Daugavpils, Liepāja, Jelgava, Jūrmala, Ventspils and Rēzekne – from Riga to the smallest rural parish. It does not matter whether you live in the capital or in a remote rural municipality – distance no longer decides how quickly you can see a doctor.

Doctors available: 1 · From 60 EUR

  • Nikolajs Sorokins, Cardiologist – doctor photo

    Nikolajs Sorokins

    Cardiologist · Internal medicine physician

    Certificate: 97850037856Check the register (opens in a new window)

    Price60 EUR
    SpeaksLatvian, Russian, English
    Next availableThursday 12 November, 18:45

Other internal medicine physicians in Latvia

These doctors have not confirmed their profile yet, so they cannot be booked for now.

  • Ali Abbas
  • Līga Ābele
  • Baiba Adamaite
  • Anna Aleksandrova
  • Nora Aleksīna
  • Svetlana Alksne

Known internal medicine physicians in Latvia

  • Anna Matvejeva
  • Baiba Vernere
  • Dagnija Bilinska
  • Dmitrijs Poļaks
  • Jeļena Dmitrijeva
  • Julija Kataševa
  • Justīne Kaupe
  • Larisa Umnova
  • Lauma Zdanovska
  • Liene Martinsone-Bērzkalne
  • Marina Bogdanova
  • Nauris Rozentāls

This list is partial. The Latvian Society of Internal Medicine puts the number of certified internists in Latvia at around 800, so these 16 names are a small fraction of those in practice.

When to call 113 instead of booking

  • Pressing chest pain lasting more than a few minutes, or returning at rest.
  • Breathlessness that came on suddenly, especially with swelling in one leg and calf pain.
  • Coughing up blood, or vomiting blood.
  • Black tarry stools together with weakness or dizziness.
  • Loss of consciousness or confusion in someone with diabetes.
  • High fever with confusion, fast breathing, and cold hands and feet.
  • Sudden one-sided weakness, facial droop or slurred speech.
  • Palpitations with dizziness, fainting or chest pressure.

What an internist treats

An internist is a doctor for adult internal disease. They work in outpatient clinics and in hospital, work up complex cases where symptoms cross several organ systems, and manage patients carrying several chronic conditions at once. They also decide whether a narrower specialist is needed.

  • High blood pressure and heart failure
  • Type 2 diabetes and metabolic disorders
  • Liver, kidney and gastrointestinal disease
  • Chronic airway disease, including COPD
  • Anaemia, unexplained weakness or weight loss
  • Prolonged fever with no clear cause

A family doctor is enough when there is one condition and treatment is working. An internist is needed when the diagnosis stays unclear after first-line tests, or when several chronic conditions and their medicines have to be reconciled.

Subtypes

  • Subtype
    Nephrologist
    What they do
    Kidney disease and loss of kidney function
    When you'd be referred
    Raised creatinine, protein in urine, chronic kidney disease
  • Subtype
    Gastroenterologist
    What they do
    Oesophagus, stomach, bowel and liver disease
    When you'd be referred
    Persistent abdominal pain, abnormal liver tests, blood in stool
  • Subtype
    Pulmonologist
    What they do
    Lung and airway disease
    When you'd be referred
    Chronic cough, breathlessness, abnormal chest X-ray
  • Subtype
    Endocrinologist
    What they do
    Hormonal and metabolic disorders
    When you'd be referred
    Poorly controlled diabetes, thyroid disease
  • Subtype
    Rheumatologist
    What they do
    Joint and connective tissue disease
    When you'd be referred
    Persistent joint pain with inflammatory markers
  • Subtype
    Geriatrician
    What they do
    Care of older patients
    When you'd be referred
    Multiple chronic conditions, polypharmacy, declining function

The Latvian Society of Internal Medicine treats these fields as sub-specialties of internal medicine. Each carries its own certificate, so check the register for the exact specialty the doctor claims.

Glossary

Multimorbidity
several chronic conditions present in the same patient at the same time.
Polypharmacy
taking many medicines at once, which requires an interaction check.
ECG
a recording of the heart's electrical activity, the first test for chest pain and palpitations.
Holter monitoring
a 24-hour ECG or blood pressure recording taken during ordinary daily activity.
Spirometry
measurement of lung volume and expiratory flow, used to diagnose asthma and COPD.
HbA1c
a blood marker showing average glucose levels over the past two to three months.
Abdominal ultrasound
ultrasound view of liver, gallbladder, pancreas, kidneys and spleen.
Day hospital
treatment and procedures completed within one day, with no overnight stay.

How someone becomes an internist in Latvia

  • Six years of medical study and a doctor's degree, at Rīga Stradiņš University (opens in a new window) or the University of Latvia.
  • Residency in internal medicine. The RSU programme runs 5 years, 330 ECTS, tuition 5,800 EUR per year, led by Assoc. Prof. Inga Stuķēna. Programme page: RSU residency programme (opens in a new window).
  • Theory covers a problem lecture monthly and seminars three times a month, 33 seminars a year, with a written theory test after each rotation cycle.
  • The state examination covers defence of a research paper plus the certification examination.
  • The certificate is valid for 5 years. Recertification requires 250 continuing education points, at least 60 per cent tied to the base specialty, plus a 48.38 EUR fee paid to the Latvian Medical Association.
  • Entry in the practitioners register must be renewed every 5 years.

How to verify this doctor's certificate

  1. 1Open Health Inspectorate – register of medical practitioners (registri.vi.gov.lv) (opens in a new window).
  2. 2Enter the surname or practitioner identifier in the search box.
  3. 3Confirm the listed specialty reads "Internists". If the doctor offers a nephrology, gastroenterology or other sub-specialty consultation, that exact specialty must appear in the register.
  4. 4Check the certificate validity date. A permit or an adaptation period is not a certificate.
  5. 5If anything is unclear, see the register explanation page (opens in a new window).

Where this specialist practises, by city

Rīga

Daugavpils

Liepāja

For state-funded providers, see the National Health Service pages (opens in a new window).

Choosing between doctors

  • Languages. Consultations run in Latvian, many internists also work in Russian. Confirm English when booking.
  • Experience. Clinic price lists often set out department head or dr. med. consultations separately, at a higher fee.
  • Age groups. Internists see adults only. For children the equivalent specialty is paediatrics.
  • Hospital or outpatient setting. If a run of tests is likely, a provider with laboratory and ultrasound on site saves visits.
  • Second opinion. Patients may freely choose the doctor and institution. With a valid referral, a state-funded consultation can be taken at any provider delivering that service from state funds.

What a visit looks like

  • Bring the referral, earlier test and imaging results, hospital discharge summaries, and a full list of medicines with doses.
  • Book by phone or through the provider's online form. Turning up without an appointment is not allowed, even with a referral.
  • In the public system the wait depends on the provider's queue. Private clinics usually offer a paid appointment within days.
  • At the visit the doctor reviews the course of the illness, goes through every medicine taken, examines the patient, and orders blood tests, an ECG, ultrasound or another specialist opinion as needed.
  • The referral also covers repeat visits within the same illness episode.

Cost

In the public system, with a referral, a specialist visit carries a 4.00 EUR patient co-payment. Ultrasound is 4.00 EUR and endoscopy 7.00 EUR. Co-payments in one calendar year are capped at 570.00 EUR. Without a referral the visit is a paid service at the provider's own rates.

  • Service
    Internist or family doctor, first consultation
    Price
    60.00 EUR (Veselības centrs 4 (opens in a new window), price list checked 8 August 2026)
  • Service
    Internist or family doctor, repeat consultation
    Price
    50.00 EUR (Veselības centrs 4, price list checked 8 August 2026)
  • Service
    Internist or family doctor examination before a chest X-ray
    Price
    17.00 EUR (Veselības centrs 4, price list checked 8 August 2026)
  • Service
    Remote repeat consultation for a prescription renewal
    Price
    25.00 EUR (Veselības centrs 4, price list checked 8 August 2026)
  • Service
    Internist, pulmonologist or allergist, first consultation
    Price
    70.00 EUR (ARS medicīnas klīnika (opens in a new window), price list checked 8 August 2026)
  • Service
    Internist, pulmonologist or allergist, repeat consultation
    Price
    60.00 EUR (ARS medicīnas klīnika, price list checked 8 August 2026)
  • Service
    Internist or private family doctor consultation
    Price
    58.00 EUR (ARS medicīnas klīnika, price list checked 8 August 2026)
  • Service
    Patient co-payment for a specialist visit
    Price
    4.00 EUR (National Health Service of Latvia (opens in a new window), price list checked 8 August 2026)

Professional association and oversight

The specialty body is the association "Latvijas Internistu biedrība" (Latvian Society of Internal Medicine, LIB), registration number 40008018142, registered address Hipokrāta iela 2, Rīga, LV-1079, phone +371 67042338, Latvian Society of Internal Medicine (internistubiedriba.lv) (opens in a new window). It was founded on 17 March 1997. The society brings together Latvia's certified internists, runs seminars and conferences, and carries out certification and recertification in the specialty. Contacts: Inga Stuķēna and Anita Laizāne, email anitabirojs@inbox.lv.

The parent body is the Latvian Medical Association (opens in a new window), founded in 1988, whose Certification Council issues certificates. The sector regulator is the Health Inspectorate.

Patient rights and complaints

If you have doubts about the quality of care, raise them first with the institution's management, which must operate a complaints and suggestions system. If that does not resolve it, a written submission goes to the Health Inspectorate no later than two years after the alleged infringement, and is reviewed within 30 days, extendable to four months in complex cases. The procedure and the required contents of the submission are set out on the Health Inspectorate site (opens in a new window).

FAQ

Do I need a referral to see an internist?

Yes, for a state-funded consultation. An internist is not a direct-access specialist. No referral is needed for a private paid visit.

What does a visit cost?

With a referral in the public system, 4.00 EUR. A private consultation in Rīga runs roughly 58.00 to 70.00 EUR.

How do I confirm a doctor is certified?

Enter the surname in the practitioners register (opens in a new window) and check the specialty and the certificate validity date.

How does an internist differ from a family doctor?

A family doctor works in primary care, also sees children, and holds the patient on a registered list. An internist works at the secondary level, sees adults only, and takes patients on referral.

How often is certification renewed?

Every 5 years, on 250 continuing education points.

This page was reviewed by Sergejs Ponomarjovs, from the E-Medicīna team. More about us.

Sources, last review and corrections

Health Inspectorate – register of medical practitioners (registri.vi.gov.lv) (opens in a new window)Latvian Health Inspectorate (vi.gov.lv) (opens in a new window)National Health Service of Latvia (vmnvd.gov.lv) (opens in a new window)Latvian Medical Association (arstubiedriba.lv) (opens in a new window)Microsurgery Centre (kirurgija.lv) (opens in a new window)Latvian Society of Internal Medicine (internistubiedriba.lv) (opens in a new window)Website infolapa.zl.lv (opens in a new window)Rīga Stradiņš University (rsu.lv) (opens in a new window)Health Centre 4 (vc4.lv) (opens in a new window)ARS medical clinic (arsmed.lv) (opens in a new window)Health Centre Association (VCA) (vca.lv) (opens in a new window)Riga Health Centre (rigasveseliba.lv) (opens in a new window)Ministry of the Interior polyclinic (poliklinika.iem.gov.lv) (opens in a new window)Daugavpils Regional Hospital (slimnica.daugavpils.lv) (opens in a new window)

Last reviewed: 8 August 2026

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