Everyone’s been there at one point or another - you are off in a place that is not home, something is happening with your health that is not normal, and the resources or people that you would normally turn to are inaccessible - replaced by strangers that may or may not speak your language. You might have internet access, but googling your symptoms just freaked you out and made you feel even more helpless.

What do you do? No one wants to admit that their only option is to spend a portion of their time abroad in some emergency room halfway across the world, but this is often the only choice for people in this situation, even though it is seldom the best course of action.

Travel insurance is an absolute must for travelers, especially for those traveling with pre-existing health conditions. However, it’s important to know that travel insurance protects against the cost of unexpected emergency medical expenses, it doesn’t keep you healthy or safeguard against potential health risks to you and your family.

Angela Balagtas of GlobalCare 365, an organization that helps travellers avoid unnecessary health incidents abroad, explains that “more often than not, travelers that end up in the emergency room are in the grey area between health crisis (i.e. broken bone) and feeling 100%. Emergency rooms in any country are intended for health crises, so it is both impractical and frustrating to spend part of your vacation doing something that isn’t ideal for your current situation”.

So what can you do to avoid situations like this? Well, visiting a travel physician before any trip abroad is a great place to start. They will look at your medical history, usually provide some health resources prior to your trip, and administer any travel vaccines recommended for the locations on your itinerary.

Preventative measures - such as taking probiotics a couple of weeks prior to travel, packing enough of your medications to last beyond your itinerary (in case of delays or emergencies), and understanding the various health risks associated with your destination(s) - should not be overlooked. Being prepared and preventative can often eliminate many situations that see individuals turn to the emergency room during their trip.

 

However, not all health risks and incidents can be prevented or prepared for, and there are now services like GlobalCare 365 that help advise travellers experiencing health events abroad on their best course of action given their situation, location, and medical history.

No one wants to spend their time away from home worrying about health issues, so integrate some preventative health measures in with your guidebooks and travel apps to ensure a healthy time abroad.

For a list of travel physicians in your area, visit http://travel.gc.ca/travelling/health-safety/clinic