Doctor's diary: Travel health

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By Dr Susie Tunstall-Pedoe Advertisement

"One patient came home with unwanted baggage"

The doctor's diary is a weekly insight into life in a busy GP practice.

This week Dr Susie Tunstall-Pedoe looks at essential travel advice for holidays, and tells how one patient came home with unwanted baggage.

If you are planning a holiday, even within the UK, it is sensible to be prepared. If you are travelling abroad, find out whether you need any vaccinations, and book in to your GP travel clinic at least eight weeks before you depart. Take as much information as you can about your itinerary, so that the doctor or nurse seeing you can give you accurate advice about such things as malaria prevention.

Then, sort out your paperwork:

<ul class="bulletList" ><li>Make sure you have travel insurance. </li><li>If travelling in Europe you need a European Health Insurance Card. </li><li>You may need a letter from your doctor to say that you are fit for travel (for example if you are pregnant) or that you need to carry needles on the flight (for example if you are diabetic).</li><li>Make sure you have adequate supplies of all your prescription medication and take enough in your hand luggage to allow for delays.</li><li> Finally, pack a first aid kit, and don't forget sun cream, insect repellent and condoms!</li></ul>

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