A pre-travel consultation should be a complete health promotion exercise and not merely a matter of administering vaccines. It needs to involve a full risk assessment during which the individual, the journey and destination are examined for potential hazards. Risk management strategies then need to be discussed. Essentially, general practice nurses (GPNs) should facilitate the patient’s choice of interventions by educating them appropriately and allowing them to make informed choices. The traveller needs to leave the consultation aware of the potential risks of their trip and how to prevent or manage them. In order to do this well, GPNs should have sufficient time and access to online resources. This article looks at best practice in the pre-travel consultation.
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