Vacation health care

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Travel health tips

BEFORE LEAVING

• Bring nonprescription medications that you might need with you.
• Take insurance ID cards.
• Take a medical first aid kit.
• Take sunscreen, hat, and sunglasses.
• If you are taking medications, talk to your health care provider before leaving . Carry any medications with you -- not in your luggage.
• Check your health insurance carrier regarding your health care coverage (including coverage for emergency transport) while traveling out of the country.
• Consider traveler's insurance if you are going abroad.
• Take the name and phone numbers of your pharmacist and health care provider.
• If you are traveling to another country, research the accessibility and quality of health care there.
• If you are leaving your children, leave a signed consent-to-treat form with your children's caretaker.
• If you are planning a long flight, minimize jet lag by scheduling your arrival at your destination as close to your usual bedtime as possible, according to the time zone to which you are flying.
• If you have an important event at your long-distance destination, plan on arriving 2 or 3 days in advance, if possible, so that you will be fresh for your appointment.
• Take immunization records, along with any other important medical records, especially when traveling to another country.
• When traveling to an underdeveloped country, make sure that everyone in your traveling party is adequately immunized against any infectious disease you might encounter. Some countries require certificates of vaccination against diseases such as cholera, typhoid fever, hepatitis A and B, meningococcal meningitis, tetanus, and yellow fever. Check with your health care provider. The Centers for Disease Control maintains updated advisories and immunization requirements for travelers to all parts of the world.

ON THE ROAD

• Upon arrival, check the local emergency number. Not all communities use 911.
• When traveling with children, make sure that they know the name and telephone number of your hotel in case they get separated from you. Give them enough money to make a phone call, and make sure they know how to use the phones if you are in a foreign country.
• When traveling to less economically developed countries, don't drink the water if you want to avoid the risk of diarrhea. Remember the ice may also be contaminated if there is concern about the water quality. Bottled water may be safe, as long as it is factory bottled. Traveler's diarrhea can also result from drinking beverages that contain ice. Bottled carbonated sodas, beer, and wine (without ice) are safe.
• Cooked foods are usually safe, but raw foods and salads (lettuce, raw vegetables, fruit with peel, unpasteurized milk, milk products, undercooked seafood or meat) may lead to gastrointestinal problems. Eat in restaurants that have a reputation for safe cooking.
• If you come down with diarrhea, drink plenty of bottled liquids. Broths and carbonated beverages are good for maintaining your strength.
• If you are visiting an area where diarrheal illnesses are common (Mexico, for example), speak with your health care provider about getting a prescription for antibiotics. Fill the prescription and take it with you in case you fall ill.
• When traveling long distances, expect your body to adjust to a new time zone at the rate of about 1 hour per day.

Review date: 1/18/2007

Reviewed By: Benjamin W. Van Voorhees, MD, MPH, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.