Travel medicine

Travel medicine is concerned with protecting the health of people undertaking international travel. Within the EOC Infectious Disease Service, the specialty offers pre-departure counseling to assess, based on the chosen travel itinerary and individual health conditions, the potential risks to which people may be exposed during their stay abroad. In particular, the need for vaccinations, malaria prevention measures, and other diseases are assessed. In case of health problems during or after a stay in tropical countries, our team is available for consultation and possible treatment at the request of the traveler and/or the attending physician.

• Information and awareness.
• Vaccination and drug prophylaxis.
• Treatment and therapies.

Diseases of the traveler

These are diseases that typically occur in connection with travel; much of the health problems concern infectious diseases whose pathogens are found primarily in the tropics and subtropics. Examples of traveler's diseases:

• diseases related to the intake of contaminated water and food: for example, traveler's diarrhea, typhoid fever,hepatitis A virus, polio, amebiasis, and other intestinal parasitoses;
• infections transmitted by mosquito bites: e.g., malaria, Dengue fever, Chikungunya, Zika;
• diseases transmitted through unprotected sexual intercourse: e.g., syphilis, gonorrhea, hepatitis B, HIV;
• diseases transmitted through contact with sick people or animals: e.g., measles, meningitis, diphtheria, rabies;
• diseases transmitted through skin contact with a contaminated environment (soil, water): e.g. tungiasis, larva migrans, bilariasis;
• tick-borne infections (also in our latitudes): borreliosis, tick-borne encephalitis/FSME, rickettsiosis.

To prevent potential health risks while traveling abroad, particularly in developing and tropical countries, it is important to take appropriate preventive measures:

• Observe certain behavioral tips during your stay:
  • drink bottled water of industrial origin, or filtered, or sufficiently boiled water; avoid ice in drinks; consume cooked foods or fruit to peel (peel it, cook it or forget it).
  • protect yourself from insects by using appropriate clothes and repellents; avoid bathing in fresh water and walking barefoot; avoid touching wild and domestic animals.
  • apply safer sex rules (in particular, use condoms in case of casual sex).
• Receive necessary vaccinations: in case of planned travel, travel medicine specialists should be consulted in advance so that all necessary vaccinations can be completed on time. It is recommended that specialists be consulted no later than one month before the trip. In the case of extended stays or travel under special conditions (e.g., trekking, cycling in tropical countries, volunteer work, humanitarian travel) request an appointment ideally three to six months in advance.
• Receive prescriptions for useful medications to pack: travel pharmacy with thermometer, disinfectant, band-aids, gauze; medicine taken normally; back-up medicine (e.g., for fever, allergy, traveler's diarrhea); malaria prophylaxis if needed.

What it takes to effectively plan the appointment with the counselor

Appointments are to be made by phone (Contacts for the two hospital locations are at the bottom of the page). After scheduling the appointment send the self-certification.

Blessed Virgin Hospital: [email protected]
Civic Hospital: [email protected]

It is strongly recommended to send the attached self-certification (see below) before the appointment. The required information is:

• date of departure;
• destination (geographical region);
• duration of the trip;
• type of trip (vacation, business trip, visiting relatives/friends, humanitarian activity, adventure trip);
• health status;
• having had recent vaccinations or booster shots.

The day of counseling:

• if the person requesting counseling is unwell or has a fever, it is recommended to reschedule the appointment as vaccinations may be less effective;
• it is encouraged to come to the appointment with the vaccination record (if in possession). Otherwise, a copy or photo of the booklet is also useful. If the booklet has been lost, a new one will be provided at the time of vaccination.

Upon arrival the hospital go to reception to make labels for a travel consultation and then go up to the Travel Medicine Outpatient Clinic.

Useful information

Service fee

Consultation and any vaccinations are chargeable to the hospital cashier immediately after the consultation.

Depending on the insurance coverage, reimbursement can be claimed from the Health Insurance Fund or supplementary insurance.