When taking a trip abroad the traveler must be aware of potential health problems and social / political unrest in their destination country(s). Anticipation and preparation are of great importance. State of the art medical facilities may be scarce or even nonexistent in other areas of the world.

Certain vaccinations may be required or highly recommended for travel to many countries. Protective equipment, insect repellents, water purifiers, and selected medications may be needed.

International travelers should consult their Physician 4-6 weeks before traveling. The following sites are an excellent starting point for an international traveler.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-Travel information

Located in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, the CDC is an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. This agency performs many functions in areas of disease treatment and prevention. Travel related topics include:

  • Geographic Health recommendations
  • Disease outbreaks
  • Traveler's diarrhea
  • Cruise ship sanitation inspection summaries ("Green Sheet"), and much more.

A wide variety of Health related topics are covered (from A-Z) in addition to travel health. Overall this is a fairly well organized site providing information that is informative yet not overly technical. May need to explore a bit to find desired topic. No commercial advertising present.

Homepage located at http://www.cdc.gov

The U.S State Department-Travel

Provides non-medically related information on an large number of topics for travelers abroad including:

Links to other government agencies. Lots of information but not always easy to find.

 

The American Academy of Family Practice (AAFP)- Travel information

The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) is a national, nonprofit medical association of more than 88,000 members (family physicians, family practice residents, and medical students). The above link connects to a patient information handout published in the "American Family Physician".

Travel Medicine: Helping Patients Prepare for Trips Abroad is a comprehensive article, written for healthcare providers, discussing medically related travel recommendations This article is well written and provides useful information for the non- physician; however, some topics are beyond the scope of non-medical readers.

Many other patient education health topics can be found at the AAFP's familydoctor.org

Homepage located at -> http://www.aafp.org

Travel Health Online, Shoreland, Inc.

A private company providing health/travel information to healthcare providers. This site is well organized. Information is concise and easily understood by non-medical readers. Travel Health Online uses and reorganizes information provided by the CDC, World Health Organization (WHO), the U.S. State Department and other sources as well as providing its own topics . Covers a variety of travel related topics. Information easy to find. Commercial advertising is limited. Link to Travel Medicine site not very useful to general reader.

 

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