Mini med kit

[Princess Fiona]

Ewww! Stay away from me then, I especially don't want to catch small pox


munitalP

You'll be famous ( or infamous) if you do ;p

 

[Sprucegoose]

You'll be famous ( or infamous) if you do ;p

Yes considering it was declared eradicated recently!

 

[totalk]

Perfect, food for thought.

 

[AdamR]

Re Small Pox

Interestingly, wikipedia has an article on the last person in the world known to have contracted Small Pox 'in the wild', so to speak (that is, apart from germ researchers in labs). Rahima Banu of Bangladesh in 1975. She is still alive.

 

[Nigelinoz]

Well I'm a diabetic so I take a zippered pouch which contains my glucose meter,test strips,needle for taking blood,alcohol swabs,tablets,elastoplast strips,paracetamol,eye drops and gaviscon tablets.
I always take a letter from my GP explaining why I need to carry needle stick unit and drugs,I've never had a problem even in places like Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

 

[Sprucegoose]

Well I'm a diabetic so I take a zippered pouch which contains my glucose meter,test strips,needle for taking blood,alcohol swabs,tablets,elastoplast strips,paracetamol,eye drops and gaviscon tablets.
I always take a letter from my GP explaining why I need to carry needle stick unit and drugs,I've never had a problem even in places like Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Thats good to hear, there are so many diabeteics around i am sure there wouldnt be issues.

Your Dr's letter is good insurance nonetheless

 

[totalk]

Thanks guys, this really helps.

 

[Rebekkap]

Tamiflu, amoxicillin - which is the first line antibiotic for bronchitis/pneumonia (if I get a cold I almost invariably end up with a chest infection of some sort) - maxalon, asprin, cold and flu tablets, vick's first defence, vitamins, nasal spray, antihistamines, cortisone cream, sleeping pills (temezepan), valium, bandaids, blister pack bandaids, antispetic cream, anti-diorrhea tablets, eye drops.

And a letter from the doctor saying they've prescribed all the prescription things for my personal use.

And I'm just realising that's rather a long list and makes me sound like a bit of a hypochondriac. BUT it's generally a just-in-case list, I only take a few of each thing so it's not taking up stacks of room in my bag, and it means in most cases I won't have to try to find a doctor or a pharmac_ on my travels.

 

[Dougo]

Hmmm - well the older I get the more I take. There was a time only a few years ago where I took nothing really. Then a couple of years ago, I had a very bad flu / cold which I just couldn't shake and the offerings from the Chemist and the Natural Health type shops just didn't have what I knew worked for me so I was quite sick on and off for virtually 2 1/2 months. A visit to a GP in Belgium did absolutely nothing so I didn't bother with medicos after that.

Next week we head off to Sth America from one end to the other so I have Sunblock and aloe vera gel packed for around the Equator, Diamox for Altitude Sickness in Cusco (both of us feel the effects of altitude), and something for sea sickness as we cruise around Antarctica - I love cruising but the heavy seas don't like me.

Yesterday, my GP gave me an Antibiotic script, and a letter listing the meds I am taking just in case I strike an over enthusiastic customs officer.

In addition to the traditional meds, I take homepathic remedies which work a treat on me, particularly the ones for jet lag, "bum plugging", etc etc and again I have a letter to explain these funny little bottles with liquid.

Then there's cough drops - I only like a certain brand which I know I can't get in the USA, Europe or the UK and so I cart them with me now...sort of like a tallisman to ward off a cold - lol.

Plus panadol etc etc.

Really most of the weight in my bag is taken up with preventatives as well as leads, chargers and plugs for cameras and a notepad. I did make enquiries about a universal charger however nothing is available that will cover all we need so we pack aroudn 5kg of must have extras.

 

[timster]

Ever since I came down with flu 4 hours into a 12 hour flight, I take a small kit on the plane. A few pills of each ....
Original Codral (not the new stuff that doesn't work)
Strepsils
Mylanta
Imodium
Neurofen
Aspirin chewable
Stemetil
Buscopan
Telfast

I've found effective cold / flu drugs very hard to find in some countries, including the US. When you're sick you don't want to have to go out and search for stuff. On the other hand you can buy almost anything over the counter in other countries (eg Thailand). But it helps to know what to buy (eg cipro). In a pinch, some Lonely Planet guides have useful travel medicine advice, although self-diagnosis is best avoided.

 

[Dougo]

I've found effective cold / flu drugs very hard to find in some countries, including the US. When you're sick you don't want to have to go out and search for stuff.

Too true - that's what I found in Europe and almost everywhere we went, I got conflicting advice as to whether the over-the-counter cold/flu remedies interfered with other meds I take.

I think the thing that struck me in the States was that at Walmart, I did find a options, but nothing that I could take or that I liked the taste of or had the combo of effects I was after (dry tickle, antiseptic etc etc).

In addition to that, I almost had a disaster in the States. Friends recommended a particular well known brand of throat lozenge that they used all the time which numbed the throat. Not only did it numb my throat but it made my throat swell up so much that I could hardly breathe let alone talk or drink a cup of tea - and no warning on the label that this could happen. I threw the lozenges out.

 

[PineappleSkip]

Before I arrived in PNG I was issued an impressive medical kit.

Travelling by air however, the only things I take are analgesics, eye drops and nasal spray. And only on long haul flights.

And I worried about being hypochiondriac!

Cheers skip

 

[straitman]

Before I arrived in PNG I was issued an impressive medical kit.

Travelling by air however, the only things I take are analgesics, eye drops and nasal spray. And only on long haul flights.

And I worried about being hypochiondriac!

Cheers skip

I also thought I carried way too much but I travel light by comparison to some listings here.

 

[dfcatch]

I now travel with two small bags:

1. Litre clear ziplock bag containing eye-drops (as well as other LAGs)
   
2. Aspirin, Paracetamol, Mylanta tabs, Sewing kit, Elastoplast strips, tooth picks.

So Serfty, I assume the Panadol is for use immediately prior to the sewing kit??

 

[totalk]

Excellent food for thought.

 

[DrAndyC]

Call me paranoid but I also take Prednisolone 25mg tablets with me in case of severe allergy (particularly if out bush somewhere or if beckoned to see someone having some sort of allergy / COAD/asthma issue on a plane etc) and I generally take azithromycin for respiratory and GIT infections.

I think I might add the ondansetron wafers tho!

 

[dfcatch]

I was lazy this last trip. I normally take a very basic kit:
Advil
Sudafed/Codral
That's about it....

But decided not to take anything on my recent LOTFAP trip.

But after reading this thread I'm definitely going to start taking some Rulide with me. I'm another one who after a severe cold/flu will almost invariably get a lower respiratory tract infection which is almost religiously dealt with via a Rulide/Biaxsig prescription.

Being stuck sick in Canada/USA over Xmas without basic antibiotics and no convenient access to a doctor was not fun. I'm not one of these people who runs to antibiotics when I get a sniffle, but i've gotten quite adept at sensing as soon as it morphs into a secondary infection.

I'll be seeing the friendly local overseas trained doc for a prescription before my next trip! (just in case).

 

[niemann]

Panadol, band aides, gastrolyte, Sleeping tablets (temazepam), antibiotics (eg Augmentin Duo, Rulide), Pseudofed, and Strepsils for overseas trips.

on reentry to Australia:evil: - got into a big argument with a customs officer a while back as they insisted I had to declare it, and I hadn't....in the end I won the argument because I told them that the quantity I had was perfectly legal in Australia,

LOL smart.
Don't know how you bought 'Pseudofed' in Sydney either: it's not sold here (called Sudafed).

 

[KLN]

Paraderm Plus is my favourite.
saying that i have just realised that i have forgotten it this trip..................

 

[Chatterbocks]

Make sure you check what is legal in other countries - I always take Nurofen Plus when I travel for emergencies - a few months ago I was supposed to travel to UAE and accidentally stumbled on a travel thread talking about people getting 3 months jail for possession of ANY product containing codeine on entry into UAE...

I imagine would be similar for Sudafed due to the pseudoephedrine...