Looking After Returned Travellers

Looking after returned travellers

  • Have you been unwell on your travels?
  • Do you have any lingering symptoms, health worries or concerns?
  • Have you been away for a long time, or living abroad?
  • Are you a frequent traveller?

Don’t delay seeking medical advice if you are not well on returning home – especially if your travels have taken you off the beaten track. This is especially important if you have travelled to a malarial area – symptoms such as fever, headache or feeling generally unwell should never be ignored: malaria symptoms can occur days or weeks after your return, and can rapidly become serious.

We can help: our services are geared to detecting, treating or ruling out important medical conditions in returning travellers, quickly and conveniently – including rapid tests for malaria and dengue fever, rapid PCR testing for travellers’ diarrhoea, confidential STI testing, comprehensive tropical screening, and expert medical advice.

We offer urgent appointments, in person as well as remotely, and many of our tests can be turned around swiftly in our own on-site laboratory.

Need an emergency appointment? Call +44 20 7353 5678

Remote Consultations

Not in London or the UK?

If you are still away, or are not in London, we will still do our best to help. Our remote consultations can be with a GP, one of our specialist travel doctors or a specialist travel nurse.

Some of our tests can be arranged remotely, such as our stool PCR tests: we can send you a collection kit by courier and arrange for its return.

Or if you already have one of our kits and have symptoms while you are away, you can send it back to us by overnight courier and receive a confirmed result the next morning.

Early detection of travel-related diseases

We offer screening, investigation, and treatment of infectious and parasitic diseases linked to travel abroad.

As a specialist travel clinic we test for diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, and the full range of tropical diseases.

We’ll conduct a thorough evaluation of potential exposure risks based on your travel itinerary, locally prevalent diseases, and any specific activities at your destination. Carefully targeted diagnostic testing can help detect infection at an early stage, enabling rapid treatment.

Travellers' Diarrhoea Diagnosis

Find the cause of your travellers' diarrhoea in just 65 minutes using our GI Panel PCR test.

Our in-house laboratory test  for travellers’ diarrhoea uses advanced molecular diagnostics to determine the cause of your symptoms, fast!

Our PCR GI Panel test is capable of detecting any of the 23 commonest pathogens that cause diarrhoea – such as E. coli, campylobacter, norovirus  salmonella, shigella and giardia, from a single stool sample – all that’s needed is a simple swab.

Did you know that in 20 per cent of cases, more than one pathogen may be the responsible? Our test is semi-quantitive, which means that when more than one pathogen is found, it is often possible to know which of them predominates.

Pinpointing the exact cause means that the correct  treatment can be commenced without delay.

 

Post-tropical Screening

Even if you have no current symptoms, a post-tropical screening offers reassurance against any any disease or illnesses you may have been exposed to.

We also offer general medical screenings, including well-man and well-woman check-ups and STI checks, to ensure overall health and catch any potential issues early.

STI Testing

Comprehensive testing for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is strongly if you have been exposed during your travels.

Sexually transmitted infections are common, and so are sexual encounters during travel. If you’ve been potentially exposed, a comprehensive STI check in returning home is simple common sense. We off fast, discreet testing for common STIs such as HIV, syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia, and hepatitis, as well as emerging or region-specific infections.

Early detection and prompt treatment of STIs can prevent long-term complications and limit the spread of infection to others.

Psychological Assessment + Screening

Need help with difficult or challenging experiences while away?

Travel is not always a joyful adventure. It can be a difficult and lonely time, perhaps complicated by exposure to violence, threatening situations, natural disasters, or personal trauma. If you have trying to cope with post-traumatic stress or other mental health issues arising from challenging experiences abroad, we can help.

Early detection of symptoms allows for timely intervention, support, counselling, therapy, and medication when necessary.

These efforts aim to help individuals process their experiences, manage trauma, and support emotional recovery, fostering long-term mental well-being.

Fast-track specialist referral

Fast-track referral to specialists plays a critical role in post-travel care.

If we think you need specialist or in-patient care, we will do our best to refer you directly and speedily to an appropriate expert for onward management.

FAQs

Yes – we can offer remote consultations with GPs and specialist travel nurses.

We can also offer stool PCR testing, without the need for you to come to the clinic: we can send you a sample collection kit by courier or next-day post, that you can return to us for immediate testing.

We can usually see you on the same day if needed.

We offer a full range of laboratory tests for tropical and infectious diseases, including rapid testing for malaria and dengue fever.

By far the commonest problem we see is persistent diarrhoea, for which we often find bacterial or parasitic causes.

With stool PCR testing, we can provide fast, accurate diagnosis and prompt treatment. Other common problems include rashes and other skin problems, fever, and respiratory problems.

Any fever in a traveller returning from a tropical destination needs urgent medical assessment. It is vital to test for and rule out malaria as quickly as possible. Many illnesses cause fevers, but malaria can cause rapid deterioration, and can kill if untreated.