INSIDE EDITION has what you need to know about medical travel tips.
Dr. Freda Lewis-Hall, Chief Medical Officer of Pfizer was with INSIDE EDITION’s Deborah Norville to share some need to know medical travel tips.
Norville asked, “Freda, why might people be getting sick when the travel?”
Dr. Lewis-Hall replied, “Oh, this time of year travel can be so stressful, crowded transportation, changes in climate and environment, different foods, lack of sleep, and, of course, this is cold and flu season. So, you can image with all of this going on the risk of health problems or health emergencies can really rise.”
“So, what should you do beforehand?” asked Norville.
“I like to tell people stay calm, C.A.L.M.,” said Dr. Lewis-Hall. “C is for conditions. These are medical conditions you currently are managing or getting treatment for. The second is A, for allergies. List all of your allergies food allergies, medication allergies, as well as other substances and don’t forget to list pet or animal allergies as well.”
She continued, “The L is for a list of important contact information, like your doctors information, your pharmacist's information and emergency contacts. And then M is for medications. For medications, you want to list the type, the dosage and the time that you take it.”
“That's a lot of information, though. What's a good way to keep it all handy?” asked Norville.
“So, you can go the smart phone route or you could go the old fashioned route and keep it on an index card, and don't forget to give the information to someone else to have for you in case of an emergency and you can’t get to it,” explained Dr. Lewis-Hall.
Norville asked, “Is there anything else we should know before we go out on these holiday trips?”
Dr. Lewis-Hall said, “Absolutely everyone should check with their doctor before they travel to see if there are any health risks in the area that you're traveling to or any vaccines you may need ahead of time.”
“Yeah, and you've also got a good resource people can turn to,” said Norville.
“Yes. You can go to Gethealthystayhealthy.com for healthy travel tips,” said Dr. Lewis-Hall.
“Great. Thanks so much Dr. Freda Lewis-Hall. Thank you and Happy Holidays,” said Norville.
“Happy Holidays to you and happy travels,” concluded Dr. Lewis-Hall.
