What vaccinations do I need to travel abroad?

• Thousands of people travel abroad over the holidays.
• Some countries require certain vaccines to enter.
• Find out what vaccinations you need to travel abroad.

Thousands of Americans are preparing to travel abroad for the December holidays. However, they must know what is required to enter the countries they are traveling to. To halt the spread of contagious diseases, vaccinations are required to enter some countries.

Among the health risks that travelers may confront, some may be avoidable and others may not. Vaccines, like the one for Covid-19, are an important tool for protecting yourself and others.

Why are vaccines necessary for travel?

Health care workers are more at risk of exposure to serious and sometimes fatal diseases. If you work directly with patients or handle material that could spread infection, you should get the proper immunizations to reduce the chance of getting or spreading vaccine-preventable diseases. Protect yourself, your patients and your family members. Make sure you are up to date with recommended vaccinations.

Healthcare workers include physicians, nurses, emergency medical personnel, dental professionals and students, medical and nursing students, laboratory technicians, pharmacists, hospital volunteers, and administrative personnel.

Know the vaccination schedule

Because of the pandemic, many people are not up to date on a variety of vaccines. Companies such as ASSIST CARD, international travel insurance whose mission is to take care of travelers from all over the world, have helpful information.

ASSIST CARD travel insurance has a highly trained medical team to advise and evaluate each tourist, as well as to determine exactly what vaccines you need for travel.

Hepatitis and MMR

You need a hepatitis vaccine if you don’t have documented evidence of a full hepatitis B vaccination series or a blood test showing that you are immune to hepatitis B (i.e., you have no serological evidence of immunity or previous vaccination).

If you were born in 1957 or later and did not receive the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine, or if you do not have a blood test showing immunity to measles or mumps (i.e., no serologic evidence of immunity or previous vaccination ), you need two doses of MMR given 28 days apart.

Chickenpox is important

If you have not had chickenpox, have not been vaccinated against chickenpox, or do not have a blood test showing immunity to chickenpox (ie, no serologic evidence of immunity or prior vaccination), get two doses of the chickenpox vaccine, four weeks apart.

Get a single dose of Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) as soon as possible if you have not received Tdap before (regardless of when you received your previous dose of Td). Get a Td or Tdap booster shot every 10 years thereafter.