ALMOST half of all seniors who travelled to an "at-risk" destination last year did not get the necessary vaccinations before departing.
Most commonly this is because they didn't think vaccinations were needed for the countries visited (34 per cent) or they didn't believe they were at risk of a disease (19 per cent).
A study commissioned by Sanofi Pasteur reveals that Australian seniors are not fully aware of the health risks associated with travelling to "at-risk" destinations including South East Asia, South and Central America, Africa and the Middle East.
Serious travel-related diseases that could be faced include hepatitis A, rabies, typhoid fever and yellow fever.
The study found:
- Two in five (41%) seniors travelling to an at-risk destination did not see a doctor for a pre-travel health check.
- 60 per cent of seniors who recently travelled to an at-risk destination did not believe there is a risk of spreading a travel-related disease once returned home.
- Seniors are more likely to have not discussed specific travel health topics with their doctor before their last trip, most significantly for jetlag and altitude sickness (66%), rabies/animal bite avoidance (64%), malaria prevention/mosquito avoidance (41%), safe eating and drinking advice (39%).
- More than half of senior at-risk travellers (52%) are more worried about terrorism or plane crashes than catching diseases when travelling overseas.
- Senior at-risk travellers are less likely than all at-risk travellers to have a current vaccination for hepatitis A, typhoid and yellow fever.
Sydney infectious diseases specialist Bernard Hudson urges people to get the right health advice at least six weeks before they travel.
"The reality is, no one wants to be bedridden on holiday or spread a travel-related disease to their loved ones," Dr Hudson said.
"Depending on your destination you may need medication, vaccinations or other advice.
"Make it a top priority, just as you would your plane tickets and insurance."
You can reduce the risk of getting an infectious disease when travelling by taking some simple preventative measures. Advice on the main health risks of travelling to particular countries can be found at https://vaccinehub.com.au, smarttraveller.gov.au or consult a doctor experienced in travel medicine.
Some common measures to help reduce the risk of infectious disease in many parts of the world include:
- Protect yourself from insects. Wear a mosquito repellent containing DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide) or Picaridin which will help avoid being bitten by a mosquito.
- Be aware of the risk of rabies. Be very careful around wild or feral animals, especially dogs, in all nations outside Australia and New Zealand. Avoid handling or feeding wild animals as they might bite or scratch. Animals carrying rabies often do not behave differently or look unwell.
- Think about what you eat or drink. The sources of food-borne illness are not always obvious. A glass of soft drink might be safe but the ice in the glass could be made with contaminated water.
