Thanks for the info Donna 😊
We agree, Katherine but it's sometimes very difficult for people with no medical training to argue against doctors and travel nurses when they recommend something. If a doctor you trust and have known for years is banging on about malaria and how risky it is not to take preventatives, the majority of people will listen to that doctor, even if they feel that they shouldn't be taking the medication, there is always the feeling that the doctor knows best! Even with medical training it's still difficult to argue against the healthcare professionals - we know and have been through it many times!
As well as that, we need an alternative solution if we want to turn down what they are suggesting and if they wont give it then the best thing to do is often to just take what they prescribe. My daughters doctor does in fact not think we should take Malaria profilactics but she did say she will prescribe a Malaria treatment drug for us and gave us a bunch of advice about how to recognise Malaria symptoms and what to do if we have them. I actually asked her to prescribe the profilactics but she herself suggested we dont take them. I was pleased with that response because it was exactly what I had been considering but did not want to do without a doctors advice.
Reply to this We agree, Katherine but it's sometimes very difficult for people with no medical training to argue against doctors and travel nurses when they recommend something.
I absolutely agree with you on that point, Donna. That wasn't the point I was trying to make though - I just wanted to push the point that it is something you need to reconsider each time you go away, as what is right for you and your family will vary depending on where you are going. Good health professionals shold be able to listen to your concerns and help you weigh up the risks/benefits or direct you to the appropriate sources for this information if they don't know. I hope that with my suggestions above in my first post, that Mell (and others) will be able to get some useful information for future trips.
Reply to this I'm glad that you feel comfortable with what your doctor has suggested now, Mell. That is very important in all interactions with health professionals - it is your body and you have to be happy with what you are being prescribed and why. There are good and not so good people in every profession, and unfortunately medicine is no different.........
Basically, if a doctor advises you something, they should tell you why it is needed, what kind of benefit to expect from it, what the side effects are, what the risk is of not doing what they advise and what the alternatives are to what they advise. Obviously this doesn't happen in every medical consultation - it's not always necessary. But, if you have concerns about what you are being advised, then you should ask the above questions until you get enough information to make a decision that is right for you.
You may be surprised to know that a lot of what we do as doctors involves reassuring people about why they
don't need to take certain medications!
Reply to this .... it is your body and you have to be happy with what you are being prescribed and why.
Good point there. Maybe in the old days what the doctor said had to be done. These days we are a bit more informed as well as a bit more cynical and unwilling to accept things without question.
I think another problem with disagreeing with the doctors is the risk of irritating them when we may have to visit that doctor again. When I was pregnant one of the nurses I had to see and the doctor told me that I am not to think about the birth because what happens is the decision of the medical staff. I really felt I could not ask questions. The nurse even frowned because I have a tattoo and sighed at me because she didnt think I had been with my boyfriend long enough to have a baby. Thankfully because of good luck there was a different doctor at the birth. I would had preferred a doctor I could talk with and ask questions and make decisions with all through the pregnancy. Some people say that one should switch doctors if one is not happy but when one is sick or pregnant one wants to go to the nearest one and not hike accross the city to another one. Thankfully, I am not sick or pregnant so have plenty of energy to find information about the Malaria question. It probably doesnt matter much for those who will go to someplace with Malaria once but for those of us who travel more frequently........
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