This week I’ve been to the doctors to arrange my travel vaccinations and the nurse practitioner there was extremely helpful and gave me lots of helpful information:
Malaria – Apparently the cheaper of the two treatments has been known to be hallucinogenic (which surprises me as I would have thought a lot of people would pay more), it may have been the way my eyes lit up but she quickly recommend the more expensive option for me!
Rabies – Costs a whopping £150 and the good news is that it is widely available through Africa. The bad news is this doesn’t actually matter because if bitten the stuff used for treatment isn’t so you have a maximum of 7 days to get somewhere where it is (i.e. HOME)!
Yellow Fever – Apparently not necessary however the Tanzanian officials may or may not let you in the country without it largely depending on which side of bed they got out of that morning.
If necessary there may get the option of getting this vaccination on arrival but there’s a chance it will be administered with a rusty needle that has already been in a dozen other arms and given the prevalence of blood borne diseases (Hepatitis & HIV amongst others) in that part of the world it’s probably better avoided!
So whereas I’d started out the visit with no significant concerns I’m now convinced that I’m going to return needing urgent medical attention following an attack by a rabid monkey that was attracted by the gangrenous stench coming from the wound in my arm due to a vaccination I didn’t actually need!
Still with any luck it won’t really matter because I’ll be convinced that I’m being treated in a hospital made from gingerbread with the Sugar Plum Fairies for Nurses!
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