What is travel health?
Travel health is preparation specific to you and your trip. Your destination, activities and health can affect the vaccinations, medications and precautions you need, including any local requirements.
You can plan the flights, book somewhere brilliant to stay and still have rain follow you to Himeji Castle.
ravelling will always be a little unpredictable, but the right preparation can reduce your chances of losing days to illness, facing an unexpected hospital visit, or worse.
From a Bali family holiday to trekking through Vietnam, destination-specific health planning can help you prepare for risks that may not exist back home.
In This Article
What Could You Encounter Where You’re Going?
The monkey photo in Bali, street food in Vietnam or a few days away from the major cities can introduce health risks that weren’t obvious when you booked the trip.
A scratch or bite from a monkey, dog or cat needs to be taken seriously. Rabies occurs throughout Indonesia and can be fatal once symptoms develop, while treatment after an exposure may not be readily available everywhere. Dengue also occurs in Bali and other popular tourist areas.
Mosquitoes can carry diseases including dengue, and in Vietnam, Japanese encephalitis and malaria are also present.
Depending on where you’re travelling, yellow fever and malaria may need to be part of your planning. Some countries require proof of yellow fever vaccination for entry, including in certain cases based on countries you’ve recently visited or travelled through. Rural travel, altitude and access to medical care can also change what you need to prepare for.
Health conditions and outbreaks change, so check Smartraveller’s current advice for your destination before you leave.
In short: Typhoid can cause prolonged fever and serious illness; hepatitis A affects the liver; cholera causes severe watery diarrhoea and dehydration; dengue can cause high fever, severe aches and, in some cases, serious complications.
In some tropical destinations, contaminated freshwater or wet soil can carry leptospirosis, a bacterial infection spread through animal urine. It can enter through a cut or even the eyes, nose or mouth, so activities such as freshwater swimming, rafting or hiking after heavy rain can increase exposure.
How Much Health Planning Does Your Trip Need?
Answer the questions about your upcoming trip. Your score provides a general guide to help you determine if additional travel health planning is recommended.
1. Where are you travelling?
*Destination scores are a general guide only. Health advice can vary considerably within the same country.
2. How long will you be away?
3. Where will most of the trip take you?
4. What does the trip look like?
5. How likely are you to encounter animals?
6. Who is travelling?
7. How prepared are you medically?
8. When do you leave?
Your answers suggest a relatively straightforward trip from a travel health perspective. Still check Smartraveller, make sure your routine vaccinations are current and check any medication rules before departure.
Do You Need a Travel Health Appointment?
Your quiz result is a useful starting point.
A travel health appointment becomes more relevant when you’re:
- Visiting destinations with specific disease risks
- Travelling regionally or remotely
- Taking children
- Staying for an extended period
- Carrying regular medication
- Undertaking activities that increase exposure to mosquitoes or animals
Timing also counts. The Australian Government recommends consulting a doctor or travel health clinic 6 to 12 weeks before departure, as some vaccinations need multiple doses or time for immunity to develop.
HSMC’s Travel Vaccine Clinic provides advice based on your destination, itinerary and individual health circumstances.
Check Your Vaccinations and Medications
Families should check children’s routine vaccinations, while adults can view their Australian Immunisation Register history through myGov.
Taking medication overseas needs its own check
Some countries restrict medicines commonly prescribed in Australia, including certain ADHD medications, codeine, pseudoephedrine and sleeping tablets. Keep medicines in their original packaging, carry any required documentation and check the rules for transit countries as well as your destination.
The Australian Government provides current advice on travel vaccinations and travelling with medication.
Bali, Monkeys and a Risk Worth Knowing
Getting close to a monkey or dog can become part of a Bali story very quickly.
Rabies is one reason animal contact deserves more thought than the photo opportunity suggests.
This short ABC News report looks at the rabies risk for tourists visiting Bali.
A Few Things Travellers Miss
- Some countries can require vaccination certificates based on where you’ve recently travelled, not only your final destination.
- Vaccination courses can require more than one appointment, so departure next week and departure in three months are different situations.
- Medication bought overseas can differ in strength or ingredients from the Australian version, and counterfeit medicines are another consideration.
Get the Health Admin Done, Then Enjoy the Trip
The stories worth bringing home are the unexpected restaurant you found, the view that was better than the photos and the places you already want to visit again, rather than days lost looking for medical care.
If your destination, itinerary or quiz result points to health preparation you haven’t organised yet, HSMC’s Travel Vaccine Clinic can review what applies to your trip while there is still time to act on it.
