Travel medicine Before travelling overseas, its important to find out something about the environment you're going to visit or live in. Often there are health risks that don't occur to people who've lived much of their lives in NZ, finding out what those are and how to prevent them is what travel medicine is all about.

Its not just a series of jabs or drugs for malaria either, the risk of disease varies a lot depending on what type of travel, and in what season you're going. You can easily be over-vaccinated for many trips, and we try to rationalise what's really needed rather than give you everything.

If you think you may need vaccinations, try and see the doctor 6-8 weeks before you leave so you can get everything done. You limit your choices if you turn up the week before leaving, although it is often possible to begin a programme and refer you on to specialised travel medicine clinics overseas, as we have this information.
Check the costs first. A discount may be possible if you need several of these.

Dr Alastair Borwick trained in tropical diseases and public health in Liverpool, UK in 1997, understands the subject, and worked in a NZ travel medicine clinic for a while on return.

Its helps to have the following information on a piece of paper when you come in:

• date of departure, duration of travel
• destination, what seasons are expected there, intended activities
• prior travel and any problems encountered
• immunisation history, medical history (if not already recorded at the surgery)

Yellow Fever Dr Borwick is gazetted to give Yellow Fever vaccine. This vaccine is a legal requirement to cross some international borders, mostly in parts of Africa and South America. It has to be given by a WHO-listed Doctor, accredited by the NZ Ministry of Health. There are a limited number of places where this is done, and Anne Street Medical Centre is one of those places.  

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Travel medicine links