Travel Health: Perceptions and Practices of Travel Consultants

BACKGROUND: The global increase in international travel puts travelers at risk of travel-related morbidity and mortality. Prior to travel, most travelers have contact with a travel agency, thereby providing an opportunity for intervention. With this in mind we aimed to determine some of the travel-related health knowledge, practices and needs of travel consultants. METHODS: A cross sectional study was undertaken in which one travel consultant from each of 166 Western Australian travel agencies was asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire. RESULTS: One hundred and forty-five travel agencies (87%) agreed to participate in the study. Fifty-six percent indicated that they "usually" gave broad travel-related health guidelines and recommended their clients consult a medical practitioner. Almost all travel consultants reported discussing travel health insurance; very few provided information on sexually transmissible diseases, the risks associated with drug use, or first aid kits. Over 80% responded correctly to statements eliciting their knowledge on yellow fever, malaria, and food safety; the majority incorrectly answered questions on dengue fever and altitude sickness. Fifty-six percent of respondents thought that there was "not enough" readily accessible travel health information; 52% said they would like to be more involved in providing health information to their clients. CONCLUSIONS: Contact between travelers and travel agents offers an opportunity to promote awareness of travel-related health hazards. While travel consultants' health knowledge on some topics is adequate, in other areas it is inconsistent. Many travel consultants in Western Australia expressed a willingness to be involved in future health promotion activities. This participation may be best nurtured by providing travel consultants with: (1) better health education so they are able to identify high-risk travelers and destinations for medical referral; and, (2) health information in a format they feel comfortable distributing to their clients.