Travel innoculations

Last time I needed some (about 10 years ago), I just made an appointment
with my local clinic, turned up, got a series of shots and was sorted.

So this week I call the clinic to make an appointment, and they don't do
that any more. I have to fill in a questionaire, which they take 2 weeks
to mull over, then charge me for the shots I need.

Does everyone have to pay for these now?

Of course, the irony will be that if I go away without the shots, get ill,
and make it back, I'll get treated for the illness for nowt, but costing
the NHS a lot more in the process.

 

In

I had to pay for shots when I went to Kenya a couple of years back, and
you're right it was a pain to sort out and a costly affair.

 

To protect you from Scottish poets?

 

Or Jewish holy men?

 

Sorry I wasn't clear. The clinic to which I refer is my GP's clinic. Or
are you saying make an appointment with the GP him/herself, then rock up
and say "I need some jabs"?

 

I certainly hope so. Why should I subsidise others' overseas trips?

Luckily, most people would pay for the necessary inoculations, knowing
that the consequences of contracting one of the diseases being
inoculated against far outweighs the outlay of, what, 50 or 100 GBP,
and recognising that the public purse isn't designed to subsidise
tropical travel. Those that don't sometimes find out the hard way that
the personal cost to them of contracting one of these diseases far
outweighs the cost to the NHS of treatment. Many don't get inoculated
and don't catch anything either, of course.

 

True, but I hate wasting their time. I think a letter would be more
appropriate, although easier for them to ignore.

 

"Medical Advisory Services for Travellers Abroad" is your friend:

<www.masta.com>

They have a premium rate telephone number which one rings, speaks to
an answering machine for a few minutes (Where/when you're going, will
you be living in a forest/city, how long are you going for, etc.) and
then hang up. Two days later one gets an A4 envelope stuffed full of
info saying what you need for where you're going, infection maps for
Malaria, etc.

When I receive my pack from MASTA I just make an appointment at my
local GP who give me the jabs on the NHS. I think some GP's charge
for this (mine is more enlightened and would rather I have a Typhoid
vaccine on the NHS than come back with Typhoid and get treated on the
NHS) and if you go to a MASTA clinic you also get charged. This is
why I just do the phone call for the info and then make my own
decision based on the facts and speak to my GP (I suppose NHS Direct
might know) to check what I have and what they think I need and if I
need a booster for anything.

You can call MASTA on 0906 8224 100 (calls charged at 60p/min, so do
it from work) or fill in the form on their website. If you do it on
the website you throw your credit card details at them and if you do
it on the phone you just pay the call cost.

 

Maleria treatment has changed a lot since the old days and one doesn't
hear horror stories these days about them.

It's also worth noting that the OP should make his decision on what he
thinks he needs early on as it's not worth seeing his GP two days
before he travels only to find it takes 10 days for the jab to be of
any use.

It's also worth noting that even if the Malaria treatment does have
some minor but very temporary side effects they are, on the whole, a
lot better than coming back home with Malaria and never being cured of
it.

Also: Malaria is only carried by certain mozzies in certain places in
the world which bite between certain hours of the day or night if
you're at a certain altitude.

 

Worth talking to the local pharmacist as another option for
information gathering. My local fella very helpful.

brian