Health Care Website and Blog

Health concern is one of the biggest reasons people give for not traveling. What if something happens while you’re in a third world country? Will you be able to find adequate health care? While there is good reason to fear adequate health care in a very serious, life-threatening situation, most health issues can be dealt with very well in most places of the world.

Non-life-threatening situations: Ask around until you find a specialist. Every country has specialists in nearly every medical specialty imaginable - and they are very easy to get in to see. In the USA, you can wait weeks or months for an appointment with a specialist but in most countries you will be able to get in today. They will even frequently make house calls! It may take a bit of digging to find the specialist, but keep asking everyone - hotel workers, other doctors, or people you meet on the street.

While we were traveling in Mexico one year, my knee suddenly went out. I was walking in t corridor outside our hotel room when I was suddenly struck by the most intense, excruciating pain I had ever felt. My husband and I panicked - now what?

By the next day I was sitting in the office of a knee specialist. He knew knees inside and out and, by simply feeling my knee, knew exactly what was wrong. My knee cap had come out of alignment and would take about a week to heal. He was right - a week later we were on our bikes heading back to the USA.

My son needed surgery to remove his ingrown and infected toenail. We found a foot specialist and had her do the surgery.

In Taiwan, I found a Lasik specialist for my eyes. He performed hundreds of surgeries each week.

I was in an MRI machine within hours of when my hip started hurting. When I almost collapsed due to a sudden, intense headache I was seeing a neurologist within minutes. throughout the world, specialists are knowledgeable and much more accessible than in the USA.

The key is to keep looking if you don’t find the right doctor on the first try. They are there - you just have to find them.

Life-threatening situation: When your life is in danger, it is a very different situation. With most medical concerns, you have the luxury of time. In an emergency you don’t. You need help - now!

Your approach here is to head for the biggest hospital around. Don’t wait for an ambulance; just get in a taxi and go. The doctors there will most likely know if they can deal with the situation or not - if not, they will start the proceedings to get you evacuated out of the country.

Once you’ve contacted your travel insurance company about possibly being evacuated, they’ll take over. They may know of another facility in the country or they may opt to fly you somewhere else. Be sure you have evacuation insurance! You may be tempted to go without if you are healthy, but don’t - you never know what might happen.

International travel is a wonderful, enriching experience and you’ll be glad you took the risk. Just be sure to do what you can to stay healthy, seek out specialists if needed, and be sure you have evacuation insurance in case something major happens.

If you are considering touring in foreign countries, be sure to read the tips and advice about health concerns while traveling at Nancy Sathre’s site, www.familyonbikes.org