When traveling for business, particularly if you plan to attend crowded events such as trade shows and conferences, it’s likely that you’ll be exposed to common respiratory illnesses. Long-haul air travel is another hot bed for coughs and sneezes.
How are respiratory diseases spread?
People who are unwell with an air-borne virus cough or sneeze out infected droplets. Other people inhale these droplets, or touch surfaces on which these droplets have landed and then touch their faces.
Which air-borne diseases have vaccines?
There are vaccines for travelers available for meningococcal meningitis.
You may already be protected from some diseases by your usual scheduled vaccines. If you’ve missed some of your scheduled vaccines, catch-up doses are available. At our clinics, you can get catch-up doses for diphtheria, pertussis and measles. To get catch-up vaccinations make an appointment at the branch most convenient to you, for example , our San Diego travel clinic.
Other vaccine-preventable air-borne diseases include TB, covid and flu.
How can I avoid getting a respiratory illness while traveling for work?
It is hard to avoid respiratory illnesses, but you can reduce your chances of getting infected by using good respiratory etiquette yourself, and washing your hands often. Some people choose to wear a mask in certain situations.
Some situations and locations make it more likely that you’ll catch a respiratory infection. Spending time in crowded places like markets and public transport and healthcare settings like hospitals and clinics make it more likely that you will become unwell.
Taking care of your health while traveling can help you fight off respiratory illness. Try to eat well, exercise and get plenty of rest, even if you’re working hard.
You can also get vaccinated against some air-borne diseases. At your travel health appointment six to eight weeks before your departure date, the pharmacist will tell you which travel vaccines you need to protect your health on your business trip. They can administer the first doses at that appointment, but you may have to come back for subsequent doses of some common travel vaccines.
At Global Travel Clinics, we have plenty of appointments at the start and the end of the working day for the convenience of our business clients. Vaccine appointments are very quick, and our locations are central so taking care of your health for travel won’t interrupt your working day.
Which business travel destinations are high-risk for respiratory illness?
Working in and visiting destinations with poor air quality and high levels of pollution and smoke can make you more prone to respiratory infections. Check the State Department’s travel advisories to find out if pollution and smog is an issue at your destination. At your appointment, the travel health advisor will tell you about any specific risks to your respiratory health that you might encounter, too. Our expert advisors have the latest travel health information at their fingertips to help you assess the risks you’ll be facing.
Is meningococcal meningitis a risk at my destination?
Meningococcal meningitis is a particular risk in parts of Africa during the dry season (December to June). If this matches your itinerary, then the travel health advisor may recommend the vaccine for meningococcal meningitis. This vaccine lasts for five years. It’s given in one dose.
How do I get vaccinated against meningococcal meningitis?
If there is a risk of meningococcal meningitis at your destination, the travel health pharmacist will recommend this vaccine, and administer it at your travel health appointment.
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