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© 2008 International Society of Travel Medicine, 1195-1982Journal of Travel Medicine, Volume 15, Issue 4, 2008, 283–284

14th Ed, 192 pp, paperback with illustrations, AUS$24.95, ISBN 978 – 0 – 9577179 – 7 – 8, Brisbane, Australia: Dr Deborah Mills, 2007.

The World Tourism Organization estimated that there were a record 900 million international tourist arrivals in 2007. 1 It is known that about 50% of travelers encounter some kind of health and safety problem while they are traveling. 2 Travel health advisers are confronted with a formidable task in educating and advising travelers about potential hazards and need to provide written material to travelers to help reinforce this advice. The availa-bi lity today of a number of travel health reference publications specifi cally catering for travelers has assisted greatly. The 14th edition of Travelling Well is one such reference and one that has established itself as one of the leading educational aids in Australasia for travelers going abroad.

Travelling Well is presented as a 192-page A5 publication with an attractive, full-color, glossy travelogue cover. Travelling Well promotes itself well in the opening sections. It also contains acknowledgments, a contents page, a foreword by Major General John Pearn, a section called “ How to Use This Book, ” an introduction, fi ve sections, a drug reference table insert, 41 subsections, 11 tables, fi ve more formal fi gures, six disease dis-tribution maps, copious other illustrations, a comprehensive index, and two appendixes. There is also a useful Symptoms Fast Find Index at the very end of the book on page 192, and the book features

BOOK REVIEW

Travelling Well: The “ Must Have ” Guide to a Safe and Healthy Journey

Deborah Mills DOI: 10.1111/j.1708-8305.2008.00212.x

Reviewed by: Peter A. Leggat, MD, PhD, DrPH, FAF-PHM, FACTM, FFTM ACTM, FFTM RCPSG, Pro-fessor and Head, School of Public Health, Tropical Medicine and Rehabilitation Sciences, James Cook Uni-versity, Townsville, Queensland 4811, Australia.

a disease compendium. In the credits section, it men-tions that Travelling Well is also available as a PDF fi le and has been translated into Vietnamese and braille. On the inside back cover are contact details for the Travel Medicine Alliance, a network of inde-pendent travel medicine clinics around Australia, as well as some contact details for travel clinics abroad. It may be useful to refer to directories of travel health advisers and/or clinics provided by a number of professional organizations such as the International Society of Travel Medicine.

The fi rst section, “ Before You Go, ” is a discus-sion of aspects of pretravel health advice, including vaccinations, malaria prevention, travelers ’ medical kits, and pretravel preparation. A handy vaccination proforma is provided on page 20. A detailed discus-sion of malaria prevention follows. The section on fi tness, commencing on page 41, is becoming much more relevant as there is a trend for travelers to par-ticipate in increasingly adventurous activities. Even some basic advice concerning lifting heavy luggage is discussed. Although there is scope to insert addi-tional material, the key points are made concerning the need to obtain travel insurance and to consider fi rst aid and self-defense courses, as well as possibly gaining a basic grasp of the local language. It is curi-ous that one of the largest providers of fi rst aid courses in Australasia, St John, is not listed.

The second section, “ While You Are Away, ” deals with staying healthy and gives practical advice on avoiding common conditions, as well as advice on ac-cident prevention, personal security, psychotropic drugs, female travelers, traveling with children, sexual health, heat illness, and extreme environments. The hints on page 82 for dealing with culture shock are particularly useful. Travelers should consider disaster preparedness and taking some responsibility for their own health, safety, and welfare. Most importantly,

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Book Review

for those in remote locations or working in humani-tarian crises, it is important that these travelers have a clearly defi ned exit strategy.

The third section is titled “ If You Get Sick. ” There are some useful sections on fi nding doctors abroad and dealing with emergencies, including practical tips and self-treatment of a range of condi-tions, such as malaria, travelers ’ diarrhea, chest in-fections and wounds, and emergency contraception. The subsections on page 84 dealing with fi rst aid underline the importance of travelers having such knowledge, given that the life they save may be their own or those of their children and since the tradi-tion of fi rst aid may not be well established in many countries visited. The actual discussion of emer-gency fi rst aid commences on page 141, concluding on page 144 with some very useful fi rst aid hints for assisting children. Key points on fi rst aid could be highlighted for ready reference, perhaps on the inside of the front or back cover. At the end of the third section, there is a detailed eight-page drug reference table. On page 103, there is a useful basic fl owchart for treatment of travelers ’ diarrhea.

The fourth section, “ A Few Details, ” is a useful disease compendium of topics from acquired im-munodefi ciency syndrome to yellow fever. It con-tains a number of disease distribution maps. Travelling Well cannot be expected to be compre-hensive, but a number of diseases relevant to travel-ers, such as leptospirosis, have been added since earlier editions. Other diseases, such as typhus, are mentioned briefl y in an earlier section, and some diseases that might be relevant to travelers, such as fi lariasis and scrub typhus, are neither indexed nor discussed in the disease compendium. Travelers would need to discuss more unusual conditions with their travel health adviser. Preventive measures for avian infl uenza are discussed.

Section 5, “ When You Get Home, ” provides some useful educational tips for returning travelers in the event that they become ill. This includes the need to inform their clinician that they may have

been to a malarious area if they get fevers. This section has the greatest potential for expansion. The all-encompassing “ travelling well poem ” by the author on page 183 emphasizes the conversa-tional style of this publication.

The inclusion of the two “ appendixes, ” “ Vaccine Transport ” and “ Sustainable Tourism — Our Com-mon Responsibility, ” between the index and the Symptoms Fast Find Index is something of a mystery. They would be better placed in the main text. “ Vac-cine Transport ” needs to be discussed in the context of the need for a doctor ’ s letter and any relevant clear-ances needed. “ Sustainable Tourism ” is so important that it could be placed in the opening pages.

Travelling Well has improved subtly with each successive edition since fi rst published in 1989 with over 125,000 copies printed. Travelling Well has some stiff competition internationally, some exam-ples of which have been reviewed elsewhere. 3 – 5 However, Travelling Well will certainly appeal to travel health advisers in Australia and the region who do not already use a similar guide to help pro-vide educational reinforcement of the travel health advice given to travelers.

References

1. World Tourism Organization. Facts and fi gures . Available at : http://www.unwto.org/index.php . ( Accessed 2008 Apr 19 ).

2. Steffen R , DuPont H , Wilder-Smith A ., eds . Manual of travel medicine and health . 2nd Ed . Hamilton, ON : BC Decker , 2003 . ( Reviewed in Travel Med Infect Dis 2003 ; 1 : 197 – 198 .)

3. Fujimoto GR , Robin MR , Dessery BL . The traveler ’ s medical guide . 3rd Ed . St Paul, MN : Prairie Smoke Press , 2003 . ( Reviewed in J Travel Med 2006 ; 13 : 60 – 61 .)

4. Lankester T . The traveller ’ s good health guide . 3rd Ed . London : Sheldon Press , 2006 . ( Reviewed in J Travel Med 2007 ; 14 : 418 – 419 .)

5. Zimring MP , Iannucci L . Healthy travel . 1st Ed . Laguna Beach, CA: Basic Health Publications, 2005. ( Reviewed in J Travel Med 2007 ; 14 : 138 – 139 .)