Do you have any tips or guidelines for health care whilst abroad

asks Brandon

A. Keeping healthy and preventing illness or infection while abroad boils down to common sense in most cases, and in most western countries you can usually act as you would at home. But there are some guidelines you can follow:

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1) Most holiday illnesses manifest themselves in the form of an upset stomach - usually contracted from water or food. This can be avoided in the following ways:

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a) Clean water: always try to consume clean and uncontaminated water where possible. If you are unsure about the state of a water supply in a hotel or restaurant, stick to bottled water. Otherwise you can boil or sterilise water (with sterilising tablets) before drinking it or brushing your teeth.

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Also avoid drinking water in swimming pools, lakes, rivers or from the sea. Importantly, avoid ice if you are not drinking the tap water, as it will be made from tap, not bottled, water.

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b) Personal hygiene: Maintain your personal hygiene standards - eg washing hands after going to toilet especially when handling food.

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c) Eat well: Make sure that you only eat hot, not warm, cooked food. If you eat uncooked food, eg fruit, make sure that it can be peeled or shelled. Avoid food that has been exposed to flies.

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2) Another common cause of illness is too much exposure to the sun. This can be avoided in the following ways:

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a) Always wear sun protection lotion and a hat.

b) Stay out of the sun for at least two hours around midday when the sun is at its strongest.

c) Wear sunglasses with a UV filter.

d) Drink plenty of water to remain hydrated.

e) Avoid alcohol.

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3) Avoid insect or animal bites. This can be done in the following ways:

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a) Wear insect repellent, especially for mosquitoes, at night.

b) Wear loose clothing that covers your legs and arms at night.

c) Avoid close contact with all animals, even those that appear tame, as they may have rabies.

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4) Traffic savvy: Traffic accidents are very common among travellers, these can usually be avoided by following these instructions:

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a) Familiarise yourself with local traffic regulations.

b) If you are on a motorbike or bicycle always wear a helmet.

c) If you are travelling in a car, always wear the seat belt.

d) When hiring a car make sure that the brakes, including the handbrake are in good working order and other obvious things are working, eg indicators, windscreen wipers, horn etc.

e) Keep calm and do not become enraged with local traffic practice.

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(5) Vaccinations: check with your GP before you travel out of Europe, to ensure that you are up to date with all your vaccinations, and make necessary arrangements to have any recommended for your country of destination. Leave plenty of time - at least six weeks - before travelling to check this out, as you may have to have a course of injections.

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A full list of the vaccinations needed for all foreign countries is available online from the Department of Health's website: http://www.doh.gov.uk/traveladvice/intro.htm

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6) Dental care: If possible, try to have a dental checkup before you leave as emergency dental care can be a lot more expensive than medical care.

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7) Label all drugs: If you are on any prescribed medication make sure that you have enough tablets etc. with you to last your entire holiday -and make sure that any medication carries a chemist's label so that the drugs can be identified.

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8) Carry medication for travel and altitude sickness if you are prone to these conditions.

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Q. What happens if I do get ill when I am abroad�- what should I do

A. Firstly, do not travel abroad without travel insurance - as you may well have to pay for health care. If you do have to pay, you can either do it up front (if you can afford it) and claim in back from the insurance company on your return home, or alternatively a hospital or doctor can contact your insurance company direct and arrange for payment to be made.

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Secondly, the level of free emergency care you receive while you're abroad will depend on the UK's relationship with the country of your destination.�

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European Economic Area (EEA) countries: If you are in a country within the EEA (which is any European country in the European Community plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway) you will be covered under a reciprocal health care arrangement. This means that you will either receive free or cheaper health care but filling in an E111 form. These are available from your doctor before departure or online from the Department of Health (DOH) at the address above.

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The UK also has a reciprocal agreement for medical care with 40 other countries outside of Europe, if you are in any of these you will receive free or cheaper medical care. A full list of these countries is available from the DOH website.

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Your travel insurance will really come into its own if you are visiting a country that does not have a reciprocal health care agreement with the UK. Surprisingly this includes the US and Canada, plus Latin America and Africa, India and the Far East.

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Some good websites that carry more detailed information on health care while travelling include the following: http://www.doh.gov.uk/traveladvice/intro.htm http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/travel/

http://www.travelhealth.co.uk/

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If you have any other Travel related questions, please click here

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By Karen Anderson