International Travel
A pretravel consultation with a qualified provider is an important component of preparing for international travel.
A pretravel consultation with a qualified provider is an important component of preparing for international travel. Opportunities to visit a travel clinic are limited by expense, availability, and travelers simply neglecting to consider health risks of traveling abroad because of the excitement of the experience.
Balancing cautions with all the appreciations that come from global travel can lead to a positive international experience as well as protect public health by limiting the risk that travelers play in the spread of infectious diseases.
The resources provided here are intended to offer helpful guidance for self-study when preparing for international travel. Factors to consider during planning include trip itinerary, duration, and purpose and the traveler’s personal health history.
Traveler Advice | Travelers' Health | CDC
Centers for Disease Control (2024). The pretravel consultation. CDC Yellow Book.
Food and Water
Strategies such as avoiding raw and undercooked meat and seafood, handwashing, avoiding ice in beverages, avoiding raw fruits and vegetables, avoiding street vendors can be valuable in avoiding foodborne illness. Additionally, speaking to your primary care doctor about ways to mitigate and treat traveler’s diarrhea is helpful for travelers.
Use bottled water for drinking and brushing teeth in areas where safe tap water isn’t available.
Recreational water such as pools, river, and lakes can be potentially contaminated. Travelers should avoid these if they have diarrhea symptoms and/or open wounds.
Food and Drink Considerations When Traveling | Travelers' Health | CDC
Avoid Contaminated Water During Travel | Travelers' Health | CDC
Insect Precautions
When traveling to malarial risk areas, work with a provider before departure to obtain a prescription for medication to be taken while visiting the risk area. Also, use precautions such as insect repellent, wearing protective clothing, and bed nets (if not sleeping in sealed accommodations) to prevent bites and other mosquito borne illnesses.
Medications
Traveling with prescription and over the counter medications. Awareness and planning are necessary to avoid unexpected situations at customs in other countries.
Healthcare Abroad
Accessing healthcare abroad usually requires up front out, of pocket payment. Have a plan for accessing care and consider purchasing a travel health insurance policy for the trip. Be sure that the travel health policy covers the cost of medical evacuation.
Visiting Friends and Relatives
Factors such as longer duration of travel, interaction with locals, and frequently eating the local food can place this group of travelers at higher risk of illness.
Medical Tourism
People seek medical care in other countries for many different reasons. The risk of complications is dependent on several factors such as the destination, the facility performing the procedure, and the traveler’s own health status.
Medical Tourism: Travel to Another Country for Medical Care | Travelers' Health | CDC
Getting Measles While Traveling
Find out more about the Measles virus.
Other Resources
Thank you for visiting this website and exploring the resource links provided. Please strongly consider an in-person travel consultation with your primary care provider or with one of the clinics listed. Happy travels!
Travel medicine clinics
- Passport Health
- Passport Health | Immunizations | Travel Clinics (passporthealthusa.com)
- Cabarrus Health Alliance
- International Travel | Cabarrus Health Alliance, NC - Official Website
- Your primary care provider may also recommend and prescribe travel related vaccines and malaria prophylaxis.
- Mecklenburg County Health Department Immunization Clinic has routine vaccines available: 704 336 6500
State Department (travel.state.gov)
- Travel advisories
- Enroll in the smart traveler enrollment program (STEP) to receive information and alerts and make it easier to locate you in an emergency overseas
- Passport info