Should Your Family See a Doctor Before Travelling Overseas?

Certain countries in South America and Africa require compulsory yellow fever vaccination. You can read Australia's list of yellow fever risk countries here. Other vaccinations and malaria medications are often needed as well. Note, in a young child the dose will need to be calculated and adjusted accordingly. Certain vaccines require multiple doses over weeks, and some vaccines take a few weeks to be effective. For this reason, it is best to plan ahead and have your initial travel medical consultation many months prior to your planned trip.

Your destination can affect your medical condition, and the conditions at your destination can cause medical conditions. Topics to discuss with your doctor include altitude, interactions with wildlife, and exposure to mosquitoes. Make sure you are prepared with lots of detail about your itinerary, as your doctor will need to consider these factors when providing you travel health advice.

Adequate travel insurance is essential, including making sure you get any existing conditions accepted by your insurer. Consider registering your trip on smartraveller.gov.au 

Prevention is better than cure – mitigate jet lag by timing your sleep and staying well hydrated, avoid deep vein thrombosis by moving in flight. At your destination pay attention to mosquito deterrence and food and water hygiene

Consider medications (such as anti-fever, anti-diarrhoeal, anti-nausea, antibiotic, anti-histamine, etc), oral rehydration salts and bandaids. Caution should be taken and these topics discussed carefully with your doctor. For example, we have seen some people become severely unwell after taking antidiarrhoeals for a bacterial gastroenteritis, as the infection subsequently entered the blood stream. Where possible, travelers are often better to seek medical care rather than taking an exhaustive medical kit.

Remember to pack your medication, immunisation history and a health summary sheet - some countries have restrictions for certain medications so it is good to check before departure. Think about asking your doctor to publish your My Health Record Shared Health Summary so you can access your medical history online from overseas.

Travel can be fun, but also complex, especially if you have a health condition. Due to differences in your health and your destinations, it is prudent to obtain individualised medical advice prior to travelling. Book a travel consultation now at Growlife Medical. Read more about our Brisbane Travel Doctors.