Review course in Travel Medicine

We are planning an upcoming review course we are creating for Canadian Physicians and Nurses in Travel Medicine.

The International Society of Travel Medicine (ISTM) is the principle organization for travel medicine and sets up a Certificate exam every 2 years. Their meeting is held in North America every 4 years and this time it will be in Vancouver May 20-24,2007. They will run their certificate examination prior to the general meeting.

I and my colleagues have put together a review course to enable Canadian practitioners to study and pass this examination.

This review course is based on the published “Body of Knowledge” important to practice Travel medicine outlined by the ISTM but is independent of the exam and ISTM

Our goal is to review basic and advanced topics in Travel Medicine so that doctors new to this field of medicine can become rapidly proficient.

Basic Travel Medicine Essentials. Feb9-10th, 2007. Calgary, Canada. Emphasis on setting up and running a travel medicine clinic, and offers an introduction to travel and tropical medicine from the ISTM Body of Knowledge.

Lecture descriptions:

1 Travel Medicine Overview- an introduction and explanation of the scope of travel medicine. Resources available to new practioners will be reviewed.

2 Vaccines Childhood vaccines
A review of basic childhood vaccines needed for Canadians. Review of frequent oppositions and claims made by anti-vaccinations and how to appropriately respond.

3 Travel Vaccines
A review of the common immunizations needed for travellers and administered routinely through family medicine clinics. This review will help new clinicians use available resources to make decisions in counselling prospective travellers.Tuberculosis and Mantoux testing

4 Less common Travel vaccines
An approach t recommending less common vaccines – rabies, meningitis, Japanese encephalitis and tick borne diseases.

5 Travelers Diarrhea
Counselling patients on how to avoid diarrhea associated with travel. Preventative measures as well as early self-treatment

6.Principles of safe eating
Other food borne illnesses will be discussed as well as common strategies to ensure safe health while eating abroad.

7.Insect Borne diseases
An overview of important preventative health strategies to communicate to travelers exposed to tropical infections. Special emphasis on Chaga’s Disease, Sandfly fever, Tick borne illnesses, River blindness and other mosquito borne illnesses.

8. Malaria
Description of the importance of malaria to travelers and available chemoprophylaxis in Canada . Emphasis on counselling travelers with complicated itinerary.

9.Altitude Illnesses
Discussion of common altitude illnesses- Acute Mountain Sickness, High Altitude cerebral Edema, High Altitude Pulmonary edema, and other less known entities. Current chemoprophylaxis recommendations for travelers.

10.Fitness to Fly
Screening prospective travelers and making recommendations for travel in the context of pre existent medical illnesses.

11. Human Papilloma Virus
This will discuss the new vaccine Gardasil and how it may be introduced into a family practice or travel medicine clinic. Similarly the new vaccine Zostavax will also be discussed as details prio to its launch become available

12. Rabies
When to recommend the vaccine and what to do if your patient is bitten. Discussion on the vaccine and immune globulin and circumstances on how it should properly be administered.

13 How to run a travel clinic
This discussion will cover important issues relevant to a successful clinic- Business Plans, establishing credit for large vaccine orders, vaccine storage, continuing education for clinicians and staff, and marketing and advertising.

14. Review- sample examination of presented material and summary

Vancouver, Canada. Course intended to supplement preparations for ISTM Certificate of Travel Medicine examination with emphasis on lesser stressed topics.

Schistosomiasis

Travel Medicine Part 2

Advanced Course:
Module 2 Advanced Travel Medicine Topics
This session is intended to supplement the basic course with less common topics in travel medicine (total of 16 hours).

1 Japanese Encephalitis (30 min)
A description of the Japanese encephalitis virus and the use of the JEV vaccine for travellers

2 Dengue Fever (30min)
Description of Dengue fever, the risk to travelers and preventative measures

3 Old Retired Vaccines (30 min)
A review on immunizations no longer used- old typhoid vaccines, lyme disease, anthrax, rotavirus and others. This lecture will assist clinicians in reading and interpreting older immunization records.

4 Chaga’s disease (American sleeping sickness) (30 min)
A description of the biology and risk of American trypanosomiasis

5African sleeping sickness (30 min)
A description of the biology and risk of African trypanosomiasis

6Yellow Fever (one hr)
A description of yellow fever. Its historic and modern importance and its proper use. A discussion of the rules pertaining to yellow fever clinics in Canada will be reviewed and how to set up a Yellow fever clinic

7 Cruise ships (1 hr)
This will briefly discuss the conditions in working aboard a cruise ship medical department and counselling prospective patients embarking on cruises.

8 Fish borne toxin diseases (Ciguatera/Scombroid)
This will discuss different toxins associated with eating fish and how travellers can choose fish to eat safely. at least one hour

9 Scuba (Recreational) an Introduction to Dive Medicine
This will describe common maladies associated with scuba diving. Instructions for clinicians planning to start a dive medicine practice and screen prospective divers one hour

10 Shellfish diseases (1hr)
A discussion of non cholera vibrio in shellfish

11 Culture Shock Issues (1 hr)
This discussion will examine psychological morbidity in travelers abroad and when returned (Counter-culture shock). This will also discuss the concerns of mefloquine and neuropsychiatric problems abroad.

12Cholera and Vibrio (30 min)
A discussion on cholera prevention, the ongoing world pandemic and vaccines past and present

13 Travel Medicine Practice (1 hr)
How to set up a travel medicine practice- advertising, marketing and organizing a travel clinic.

14 Parasites in foods: Flukes and worms (1 hr)
This will examine the risk to travelers and immigrants from countries where the ingestion of raw fish and seafood is common.
Specific discussion of Clonorchis sinensis and Paragonimiasis and other species.
Discussion on screening and preventative educational initiatives will be introduced.

15 Antivaccinationists (30 min)
A discussion of the ongoing phenomenae of antivaccinationism with an understanding of its causes and repercussions in leading to decrease uptake in vaccination programs. A tool kit in preparing for debates with antivaccinationists will be covered

16 Bioterrorist Anthrax and Smallpox (60)
A discussion on general topics in bioterrorism concepts with specific emphasis on the vaccinia virus. Review of the administration of vaccinia and Vaccinia Immune globulin according to modern guidelines.

17 Tuberculosis and Mantoux testing (30)
Overview of modern challenges in managing Tuberculosis in travelrs and health care workers. Topics covered include the proper administration and interpretation of the tuberculin skin test; comments on the BCG vaccine and new developments in diagnosis (quantaferon).
*
18 Issues in Travel Medicine: ‘Sexual Tourism’ (1hr)
A discussion of the phenomena of Sexual tourism and awareness of key forces that drive this problem with emphasis on the role of tourists participating in black and grey market activities that support organized crime directly and indirectly

19 Schistosomiasis (1 hr)
A description of the risk of this disease in travelers and methods to diagnose this in returned travelers

20 Review and practice exam to part 2 (1 hr)

Faculty

Trish Batchelor MD Lecturer, Austrailia
Lori is an expierenced travel Physician and is working on the International Society of Travel Medicine's committee on working with the Travel Industry (TIPEC).

Trish Faurschou RN, Lecturer Alberta
Trish has worked in Travel Medicine and in Labour and Delivery. She is currently also studying a second carreer in Law but continues to work in Nursing and as a lecturer in Travel medicine.

David Cote MD, Lecturer Alberta
David has worked across the country in Quebec, Ontario, Albeta and NWT. He is expierenced in Altitude Medicine. He has returned t do a residency in Otolyngerology

Margeaux Niziol BN, Lecturer, Manitoba

Margeaux is an Emergency Nurse and also practices Travel Medicine. She has started to lecture and has an interest in Emergency and Envronmental medicine.

Gary Podolsky MD , Lecturer Manitoba
Gary has worked as an Expedition , Cruise ship and Aviation Medivac Physician. From his expiernce as a Travel Medicine doctor he has sought out other clinicians and developed a Medical education program to educate other physicians.

Review and practice exam to part 2

By running these two courses prior to the ISTM exam we hope to enable as many Canadians to receive certification in this new and exciting branch of Medicine