What is travel medicine?

I can't begin to count the number of times I have been asked to describe what is meant by travel medicine. Today, another client suggested that I start a blog...so here goes. Emporiatrics is the formal name for the practice of travel medicine. It is a great profession to have when you are on a cruise and are playing "stump the cruise staff". They never guess correctly.

So many people just decide to take an international trip - buy an airline ticket - throw in a rental car or perhaps a tour or two and set off on their adventure. Unfortunately, many get more than they bargain for - they become ill during their trip - and with illnesses that could have been prevented if they had visited a travel medicine clinic and had been educated and/or immunized prior to their trip.

There is so much mis-information on the internet and there are excellent websites. There are concepts that are hard to tease out of many websites. Each traveler is unique - having different medical history, different age, different itineraries, different resources, - you get the point. My goal is to help travelers have an enjoyable trip and stay healthy while having wonderful experiences. I have traveled to 125 countries and all continents - and have remained healthy throughout the world.

Tomorrow - I will explore the difference between the terms REQUIRED and RECOMMENDED when used in the world of emporiatrics.