Travel safety check list

This week's topic Travel Safety checklist

Now that summer is here and families are traveling, I am going to do a post that my dad would have loved. My father’s birthday was June 21. He would have been 92 today. He was a physicist who looked at the world from a unique perspective. How do things work? What is broken, what can I fix, but even more importantly what might go wrong and how can I prevent it? When he was teaching me to drive I remember him pointing to a boy with a ball on the sidewalk. “What could happen”? The ball could drop, fall into the street and the boy might rush into the street to follow it. Anticipating what could go wrong was the first step to prevention. My regular readers have heard me say that we can’t keep our children wrapped in bubble wrap. I really do encourage folks to go off and have grand adventures. On the other hand, it is important to be aware of potential hazards. Knowledge is power and some accidents can be prevented. Others can be handled with less stress if you are properly forewarned. I have done several previous posts on traveling with your kids that have more of a “managing the voyage." Here is the link to the most recent one: https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2018/03/travel-tips-2018.html This one has some overlap but a different focus. The travel safety checklist Health Do you or your family need any travel vaccinations where you are going? Make sure you get these done at least a month before the trip if possible. It generally takes a few weeks for things to take effect. The only exception would be the early MMR, which can’t be given earlier than 6 months of age. It isn’t a bad idea to have a copy of your immunization records with you on your travels. Make sure tetanus is up to date. The CDC's Travel website is a great resource If your child gets ill during the trip, it is important to know where to get care. What local urgent care options are available? Are you visiting family that has a doctor who will see travelers? Do your homework, check with your insurance if that is applicable to see what will be the most cost effective choices. If your child has a history of wheezing, even if they have been fine for years, take your inhaler with you. If they have ever had an anaphylactic reaction, make sure you have your epipen. Also have fever reducer and an antihistamine with you. https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2018/08/anaphylaxisepipen-options.html We can NOT call in prescriptions to another country! (Including Canada!) Are you visiting friends or family? It might be awkward, but do it anyway - Ask your hosts if they own a gun. It is essential to make sure that any guns are locked away, separate from ammunition. (This has nothing to do with the second amendment.) https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2019/01/gun-safety.html Ask about poisonous plants https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2019/04/keep-your-kids-safe-from-toxic-plants.html Make sure that medications are child proofed. Grandma and Grandpa might have medications in areas that are easily accessible if they aren’t used to having young kids visiting. I had one little patient who got a dose of oxycontin right out of a nightstand drawer. Thank goodness she was okay. Is there a pet? Is the animal comfortable with kids? If animals are even the least bit growly, make sure they are kept in a different room. Some pets get stressed from having little ones around. I have dealt with more dog bite cases than I can count https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2019/08/kids-and-pets.html Staying in a cabin/ Air B&B Make sure there is a carbon monoxide detector or bring your own. This is more important in the winter if there are wood burning stoves or space heaters https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2017/11/carbon-monoxide-2017.html Most places have a smoke detector. Do a little test to make sure it has working batteries. Fire extinguishers are useless if you don’t know where it is and how to use it. Check the mattress before you unpack to make certain there are no bedbugs. The best way to do this is lift the sheets and make sure you don't see any red spots. Bed bugs are large enough to spot. https://bedbugregistry.com/ In some cities like NY they are rampant. This is not a souvenir that you want to bring home. If you are traveling internationally, be aware that cribs may not have the same safety standards that we have here in the US Food safety We have had quite a lot of calls regarding international travel and loose stools. If there is vomiting, diarrhea and fever, this is likely bacterial and you should be seen. Making sure that you have clean water is essential. Make sure to avoid ice unless you are in a resort area that assures the safety of the water. It is worth asking the place where you are staying if the water is filtered. Street food, raw fruits and veggies, raw or under-cooked meats and fish, can all lead to trouble. Swimming and Water safety If you are going anyplace with water nearby, appoint a water guardian. https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2018/07/drowning-prevention-appoint-water.html Make sure there are alarms and fences around any pools, but there is no substitute for watching the kids like a hawk. Crowds Will you be out in large crowds? Take a photo of your child before the outing so you know exactly what they were wearing in case you get separated. Consider bright, recognizable colors. Write your cell number on their arm and cover it with liquid bandaid so that it doesn’t wash off. Make certain that your child knows the safety plan and where you should meet up if you get separated. Hiking? Do a head to toe Tick check every day. Make sure you have plenty of bug spray and sunscreen. Use appropriate insect repellent. Dr Anne especially likes Sawyer lotion . Watch out for poison oak or ivy https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2019/04/tick-bites-2019.html https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2018/05/mosquito-and-insect-bitesprevention.html https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2017/03/poison-oak.html Altitude If you are above a certain elevation, it takes some folks a bit of time to adjust. You have to pay extra attention to sun and hydration. https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2019/05/sunscreen-2019.html Weather My San Francisco kids aren’t used to hot humid weather. Make sure everyone is getting plenty of fluid. Pedialyte has little packets that can get mixed with water to create a perfect electrolyte solution. https://nursejudynvp.blogspot.com/2018/03/dealing-with-altitude-2018.html Protect the Lovey, blanket or stuffed animals that come on the trip Deciding which security items come along on your travels is a big decision. If your child has a favorite blanket that they snuggle with, losing something in the hotel sheets can be a nightmare. We learned this the hard way with Alana's stuffed Bambi that she had chosen to accompany us on a family trip to New England. When we returned to the hotel room after a day out, Bambi was no where to be found. We had the hotel check the laundry multiple times, to no avail. Alana was heart broken. Several weeks later, Sandy and I were passing a Disney store and found a similar Bambi. "This isn't my Bambi!" Alana knew. There is no replacing a lost and well loved stuffy. "I will call him Benjamin." Benjamin has survived and is still in Alana's childhood room. Dr. Anne's daughter also lost a stuffed animal in an airport. I think this happens a lot.