Nationwide Survey of the Role of Travel Medicine in Primary Care in Germany

Abstract

Travel medicine is of importance in primary health care in Germany. There is a need for improved counseling on exposure and STI prophylaxis. GPs' training in travel medicine and cooperation with institutions such as institutes, clinics and laboratories for tropical medicine should be improved.

Chemoprophylaxis and Malaria Death Rates

“…Additionally, physicians and pharmacies have begun providing pretravel advice, which may have affected the aforementioned factors. Providing this advice in the past has been the domain of a few highly specialized centers ( 26 ). …”

Notifiable Disease Surveillance and Practicing Physicians

“…We sent a standardized questionnaire to a random sample (N = 8,550, 14.5%) of 60,280 primary care physicians to be returned by mail on a voluntary and anonymous basis ( 4 ). …”

The Practice of Travel Medicine: Guidelines by the Infectious Diseases Society of America

“…What was clear from the survey was that the global practice of travel medicine in the mid-1990s was extremely diverse. Recent smaller surveys indicate that travel medicine practice continues to be diverse [29,30]. Care of travelers was provided by those with formal training in tropical and travel medicine who saw thousands of travelers each year in organized travel clinics, as well as by individuals with generalist training who saw only a few patients in the context of their general practice.…”