It’s summer and despite the existing COVID-19 pandemic, many people are enjoying their summer vacations and many others are still planning for it! During the holidays the opportunity to travel increases, either to have an adventure in the big city or a relaxing retreat on the beach. A road trip with friends or a quick flight across the country can take you to places you’ve never been before and leave you with happy memories, a new favorite getaway, or a must-see to treat a sexually transmitted disease including HIV.
According to different studies, between 20 and 70% of travelers suffer from some health problem during the trip. The main causes of mortality during a trip are, in this order, accidents, cardiovascular diseases, and communicable diseases. Traveling outside the United States can be a lot of fun, but it’s also risky for anyone. However, it may require special precautions for people with HIV. For example, traveling to some developing countries can increase the risk of getting an opportunistic infection (OI). OIs are diseases that occur more frequently and are more severe in people with HIV. This is because they have damaged immune systems. For some destinations, travelers may need certain vaccinations. Talk to your health care provider or visit a travel clinic 4 to 6 weeks before you leave for the trip. You may need several vaccines. Some of them need time to take effect.
You can stay healthy during a trip by taking appropriate steps to protect yourself before you leave. You can also take steps to prevent an illness while traveling, including any sexually transmitted infections or diseases. Remember that today, there are more tools available than ever to prevent HIV. You can use strategies like abstinence (not having sex), never sharing needles, and using condoms the right way every time you have sex. At High Impacto, we help prevent HIV, not only during the summer season but also during every season of the year. We promote and provide HIV testing. We are giving the community at large different prevention tools such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), and if you have HIV, we help you get your treatment so that you remain undetectable. Undetectable is equal to being Untransmittable (U=U). We also offer free health insurance!
For more information about our free health insurance and HIV prevention programs, contact us at info@highimpacto.org and by phone at 954-947-3603. Enjoy the summer, use a condom, start PrEP either with the daily pills or with the monthly injection, and stay in treatment!