Immunisations/Vaccinations for a round the world excursion

One of the questions we have living here in France is; do we get our vaccinations locally or over in good old blighty? Will French vaccinations work on English people? Perhaps they add essence of garlic and red wine to all their jabs, where as we probably add essence of beer or tea, with a bit of Spotted Dick or Yorkshire pudding extract thrown in for good measure.

Seriously though, if we do get our jabs in France we will need to make sure that we have translated the names of all the immunisations that we will need in to their French equivalent, just in case they miss something we think we should have. On the plus side, several trips will be needed to the doctors so going over to the UK will be both costly and onerous.

I am sure we will both look like pin-cushions by the time we have finished, but it will be worth it. The following table is an indication of the vaccinations we will need for our travels. Some are definitely required, while others are caution on our part.

8/8/05 - We have decided to have the vaccinations in France. The Institute Pasteur in Lille specialises in this area and the doctors are very knowledgeable about not only what's required, but also about epidemics and problems around the world. For example there was a epidemic of a pneumonia type virus in the Mongolian Capital, Ulan Bator. Fortunately this has now cleared up, so a visit is back on the schedule.

17/8/05 - Today we are having our 1st round of jabs, Hepatitis A, Typhoid & Yellow Fever. The cost is €116 per person. The most expensive is Yellow Fever at €67, but it's a must as we will be visiting Brazil. We are not allowed to drink alcohol or eat too much fat for 48 hours following the Yellow Fever Jab.

18/8/05 - Aching arm from the Yellow Fever jab and Sam feeling is feeling tired and a bit unwell.

22/08/05 - We both have flu like symptoms today, another side effect of the Yellow fever Jab apparently.

24/08/05 - Second round of jabs today. Hepatitis B, which we have to buy at the pharmacy and take with us to the Institute Pasteur. We are also having Meningitis A & C, plus our first of three Rabies jabs.

25th & 26th - Both feeling a bit unwell. Our immune systems are certainly taking a battering!

31/08/05 - Yet more jabs today. 2nd rabies and the first of two Diphtheria, Tetanus and Polio jabs(DTP)

14/09/05 - Final round of jabs today. 3rd Rabies, 2nd Hepatitis B and 2nd DTP. We also discussed the situation re Malaria with the doctor. The problem is that we be away so long that we cannot take anti-malarials all the time as our liver's will rebel. That's if the Russian Vodka & Thai Beer doesn't get in first! His advice was to be certain we took anti-malarials in the Amazon forest and Kruger national park and probably Vietnam as well. Apart from that we will have to chance it. The risk can be minimised by ensuring that we have long trousers & tops from late afternoon onwards, use a good repellant (100% Deet for example) and mosquito nets at night.

Vaccinations recommended or required	Cost/Duration	Country
Rabies	3 injections needed on separate occasions. 37€ for each part, lasts about 3 years, but follow up treatment is still critically important although it is much less difficult than if you have had no pre-vaccination.	India,
Hepatitis A	37€, was given with Typhoid
Hepatitis B	20€ consultancy fee as the Institute Pasteur don't supply the vaccine. The actual vaccine cost €18 each from a pharmacy. 3 injections needed on separate occasions. 2nd injection approx 3 weeks after the first and then a 3rd injection after 6 months. (In our case we will have to get the 3rd injection whilst away.	India,
Meningitis A + C	33€, given together
Typhoid	37€, was given with Hepatitis A
Diphtheria, Tetanus & Polio	20€. 2 needed in total. 10 years.
Yellow Fever	79€, 10 Years	Brazil

No Vaccinations Needed	-	USA, Canada, The Caribbean