Each year over 1 billion people travel across the world. Approximately 10 percent of travelers will experience some kind of illness on their journey, one to five percent will become ill enough to seek medical attention either during or after their trip, and one out of 100,000 will die during their travels.
Typically, when one imagines a serious illness while traveling, one imagines contracting an exotic disease (malaria, yellow fever, or typhoid). However, the most common causes of illness are actually much more pedestrian and include cardiovascular disease (heart attacks and strokes) and trauma (most commonly due to a car accident). Consequently, preparing for travel involves taking precautions to prevent common illnesses and using common sense to avoid unnecessary risks.
If you have any kind of chronic medical condition or take any kind of medication (prescription or non-prescription) it is important that before you travel you get enough medication to last through your entire trip. Many insurance companies will require that you get a “vacation exemption” in order to get medications early or to get enough medication to last through a long trip.
In case you lose your medications, take a complete list of your prescriptions including the generic name, (the brand name may vary in other countries) and the dose and frequency. If you do, in fact, lose your medications, many of the national chains (CVS, Rite-Aid, Walmart) will be able to transfer your prescription to a nearby drug store.
Be aware that, in the event of a lost prescription, you are likely to have to pay full price for the medication (which will be expensive) and you are not likely to be able to replace any kind of pain killer or narcotics, if they are lost.
If you become ill while traveling, it is important that your treating physician gets information on your past medical history. In addition, to your list of medications, you should bring a list of your medical conditions, the name and contact numbers for your primary care physician and any specialists you might see, and emergency contact information.
Remember, if you travel outside the United States, your domestic health insurance is unlikely to cover the cost of any hospitalization. It is not uncommon for travelers to be requested to pay cash or put the cost of any medical care on their credit cards. Consequently, if you travel internationally, it is often a good idea to purchase health insurance specifically for the trip.
Also, outside of the U.S., the quality of healthcare varies widely. It is not uncommon for ill travelers to find they are unable to secure the quality of medical care that they are used to back home. Consequently, it is often a good idea to purchase health insurance that will pay for a medical evacuation back to the United States.
When on vacation, it’s not uncommon to eat more than usual, drink more than usual, and sometimes do things you might not do at home. It is extremely important that in all circumstances (but especially if you imbibe more than usual) to stay aware of your surroundings, stay in safe areas, and never drive if there’s a chance you are not 100 percent sober.
It’s not uncommon for travelers to engage in short-term sexual relations while traveling (approximately 5 percent of short-term travelers and as many as 50 percent of long-term travelers engage in casual sex). Many parts of the world have much higher rates of sexually transmitted diseases in general, and HIV in particular, than the U.S. It is extremely important that travelers practice safe sex. Our travel clinic will go as far as to recommend bringing U.S. made condoms (foreign made have higher rates of breakage), if there is any possibility of sexual activity on the trip.
Travel is usually safe, fun, and a welcome break from your usual routine. A little bit of preparation and common sense precautions can often prevent an illness or accident from ruining your trip.
