International Clinical Experience

Vaccinations 

 

Hepatitis A: Recommended for all travelers

 

Hepatitis B: Recommended for all travelers

 

Typhoid: Recommended for all travelers

 

Rabies: Risk should be presumed to occur in most parts of the country. Recommended              for: prolonged stays with priority for young children. Also recommended for                        shorter stays at locations more than 24 hours travel from a reliable source of post-             exposure rabies vaccine; occupational exposure; all adventure travelers, hikers,              cave explorers, and backpackers. Consider for risk-averse travelers desiring              maximum pre-travel preparation. Dog and bat bites or scratches while in this              country should be taken seriously and post-exposure prophylaxis sought even in              those already immunized.

 

Influenza: Flu is transmitted year round in the tropics and all travelers are at increased              risk. Recommended for: all travelers over age 50; all travelers of any age with any              chronic or immunocompromising conditions. Consider for any traveler wishing to              decrease risk of influenza or non-specific respiratory illness. Consider anti-virals              as standby therapy for those inadequately immunized.

 

Routine Vaccinations (adult):

             -Tetanus/diphtheria (all countries) - Adequate primary series plus one dose of              Td within the last 10 years.

 

             -Measles (all countries) - Indicated for those born in 1957 or later (1970 or later              in Canada) without history of disease or of 2 adequate doses of live vaccine at              any time during their life. Many countries (including the U.K.) recommend that              adults need to have had only 1 countable dose at any time during their life.

 

             -Polio - Adult polio boosters are unnecessary for travel anywhere in South and              Central America.

 

             -Pneumococcal (all countries) - All adults over 65 and those with chronic              disease or compromising conditions.

 

             -Varicella (all countries) - Consider for long-term travelers with no history of the              disease.

 

Malaria Risk:  Risk (predominantly P. vivax) exists throughout the year in rural areas including diving resorts on the Caribbean coast and the Bay Islands (Roatan and others) and within the municipalities of Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula.  (Note that our physicians in Santa Lucia rarely see cases of malaria – risk is low in the Santa Lucia area)

 

Medications

Malaria Prophylaxis:  Recommend evening and nighttime insect precautions in risk areas. The medicine chloroquine protects against malaria in this area.

Traveler’s diarrhea:  High risk throughout the country including deluxe accommodations in major cities. Tap water is unsuitable for drinking. Drink only bottled or boiled water. Consider empiric treatment with loperamide and/or a quinolone antibiotic. Also Cipro commonly used.

*Information from Shoulder to Shoulder webpage

*Recommendations subject to change. Refer to CDC website for most current accurate travel information 

 

http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/destinationHonduras.aspx

 

OTC Medications (for patient pharmacy)

 

-Tylenol

-Children’s chewable Tylenol

-Ibuprofen

-Ben-gay/ icy-hot

-Children’s Multivitamins

-Prenatal Vitamins

-Senior Vitamins

-Tums

-Hydrocortisone cream

-Neosporin

-Hydrogen Peroxide

-Vitamin A (1,000,000 unit capsules)

-Saline eye drops

 

What to Bring

Preparation

 

Requirements (*per UC College of Nursing webpage)

-Able to walk two miles over rough, uneven, mountainous terrain carrying two liters of water, a change of clothes and other personal items

-Maintain a GPA of 2.8 Honduras (college and university)

-Meet all prerequisites for Community as a Partner and Ambulatory Care

-Meet all financial obligations as set by Director of Center for International Affairs, no extensions or refunds permitted

-Complete the following forms/documents:

             Online application

             Submission of copies of both Foundations of Nursing and Care of Adult clinical              evaluations to Liz Karle, 426 Procter, or Claudia Mitchell, Clermont College

-All students will be interviewed at date/time/location sent upon receipt of completed application packet

-Obtain a passport, necessary visas and immunizations

-Attend all meetings and scheduled packing days

-keep all application information current

-complete coursework in the quarter

This experience is done through Shoulder to Shoulder, a private, non-profit, non-governmental organization (NGO), formed in 1996 to provide healthcare in rural Honduras. To find out more information about Shoulder to Shoulder, visit their website at http://www.shouldertoshoulder.org/