Healthy travelers

With the H1N1 outbreak and upcoming flu season, keeping your employees healthy and safe while traveling should be one of your top priorities. You need to educate them on the signs and symptoms of these illnesses, other illnesses they might run into while traveling, the necessary precautions to take against illnesses and what to do in case they get sick while traveling.

“You need to consider the risks and benefits associated with travel during disease outbreaks,” says Debbie Carpenter, the director of account management for Professional Travel Inc. “Health care facilities and resources may become strained as outbreaks increase in number, severity and size.

Also, travelers, especially those with underlying risk factors, should consider the quality and availability of health care at their destination prior to travel, and may reconsider nonessential travel to areas where good health care may be unavailable.

Smart Business spoke with Carpenter about how to prepare for health issues while traveling and how to understand health screening procedures and notices.

How will a flu pandemic affect travel plans?

The global spread of pandemic influenza has prompted some countries to check the health of arriving and/or departing passengers. You may not be permitted to board your flight in any country if you appear ill.

There is also a more rigorous passenger screening process. In late July, several European airlines and countries said that persons who appear to have flu-like symptoms at check-in would be referred for medical evaluation and not permitted to board flights until cleared by a physician. Many countries, including China, are also screening arriving passengers for illness due to the H1N1 outbreak. These health screenings help to reduce the spread of the new virus.

Your employees will most likely need to stay put if a health concern arises while traveling. This can be quite costly and also affects your overall productivity. You need to be aware and proactive to prevent these types of situations from happening. Purchasing travel insurance can help, especially if you are traveling in a high-risk country.

How can you monitor global health issues?

Develop a plan to ensure that employees receive quality care when falling ill during travel. Partnering with an international security risk management company is your first step to due diligence. This ensures that you are up to date on day-to-day occurrences as well as country-specific information.

You can avoid any possible disruptions in service if you avoid high-risk situations from the start. You should also be aware of employees with previous health conditions that would make them high risk, and make necessary arrangements to have another employee travel in their place.