Table 3.
Awareness and practice of travelers on pre-travel consultation, pre-travel vaccination among respondents, and preventive measures against diseases subject to IHR
| Variable | Frequency | Percentage (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Awareness about pre-travel consultation (n = 479) | ||
| No | 168 | 35.7 |
| Yes | 311 | 64.3 |
| Source of Information* (n = 311) | ||
| Friends/relatives | 180 | 37.6 |
| Social media/internet | 155 | 32.4 |
| Health professional/travel medicine specialist | 102 | 21.3 |
| Embassy | 37 | 7.7 |
| Travel agent/Others | 27 | 5.6 |
| Print media/Mass media | 26 | 5.4 |
| Employer | 16 | 3.3 |
| Pre-travel consultation/health advice taken (n = 311) | ||
| Not taken | 40 | 8.4 |
| Taken | 271 | 56.6 |
| Reason for taking pre-travel consultation (n = 271) | ||
| It is the right thing to do | 198 | 41.3 |
| For pre-travel vaccinations | 40 | 8.4 |
| My employer recommended it | 18 | 3.8 |
| Due to my known health condition | 15 | 3.1 |
| Type of clinic where pre-travel consultation was taken (n = 271) | ||
| Specialist Hospital (Non-travel medicine specialist) | 168 | 35.1 |
| General health clinics (General Practitioner) | 40 | 8.4 |
| Travel Clinic (Travel medicine specialist) | 34 | 7.1 |
| Others (e.g., Company clinic) | 19 | 4 |
| Port Health Service /Aviation Medical Clinic | 10 | 2.1 |
| Time to travel when pre-travel consultation was taken (n = 271) | ||
| Less than 1 week | 227 | 47.4 |
| 1 to 2 weeks | 31 | 6.5 |
| 2 to 4 weeks | 2 | 0.4 |
| 4 to 8 weeks | 4 | 0.8 |
| More than 8 weeks | 7 | 1.5 |
| The reason why pre-travel consultation was not sought or taken (n = 40) | ||
| I did not find it important | 35 | 7.3 |
| There was no time to do so before my trip/busy | 2 | 0.4 |
| The difficulty of geographical access | 1 | 0.2 |
| I did not know about it | 1 | 0.2 |
| Others | 1 | 0.2 |
| Awareness about pre-travel vaccination (n = 479) | ||
| No | 217 | 45.3 |
| Yes | 262 | 54.7 |
| Previous travel-related vaccination (n = 262) | ||
| Not vaccinated | 106 | 22.1 |
| Vaccinated | 156 | 32.6 |
| Reason for taking pre-travel vaccination (n = 156) | ||
| To safeguard my health | 109 | 22.8 |
| It is the right thing to do | 35 | 7.3 |
| As part of the requirements for a visa | 9 | 1.9 |
| My employer recommended it | 3 | 0.6 |
| Reason for not taking pre-travel vaccination (n = 106)* | ||
| I did not find it important | 78 | 16.3 |
| I refused it | 9 | 1.9 |
| I am not aware of it | 9 | 1.9 |
| To avoid side effects of vaccination | 5 | 1 |
| There was no time to do so/busy | 4 | 0.8 |
| Financial reason/cost was high | 1 | 0.2 |
| Previous travel without being vaccinated (n = 479) | ||
| No | 219 | 45.7 |
| Yes | 260 | 54.3 |
| Previous travel without holding a vaccination card (n = 479) | ||
| No | 359 | 74.9 |
| Yes | 120 | 25.1 |
| Travel Vaccines taken* | ||
| YeF | 141 | 29.4 |
| Cholera | 9 | 1.9 |
| Ways by which travelers have prepared to protect themselves against insect bites during | ||
| stay at destination (n = 479)* | ||
| Use of insect repellants | 222 | 46.3 |
| Use of insecticide-treated nets | 79 | 16.5 |
| Use of air conditioner | 51 | 10.6 |
| Clothes that can cover arms and legs | 27 | 5.6 |
| Use of insecticide sprays | 7 | 1.5 |
| I will avoid staying out at night | 1 | 0.2 |
*Multiple responses allowed
WHO does not recommend vaccination against plague for travelers; therefore, plague vaccination was not captured in this study.17