Health & Safety Powerpoint Summary
Destination Specific Concerns
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) websites have information on health risks and considerations for most countries and regions around the world, as well as packing lists for each country:
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: http://www.cdc.gov/travel/
- World Health Organization: http://www.who.int/ith/en/
The CDC occasionally issues travel alerts for specific countries or regions. When the CDC issues a travel alert for a country or region where USC students study abroad, University officials meet to determine what steps to take to maximize student health.
Jet Lag
Jet lag is a real and often unpleasant part of international travel. Our physiological “clocks” are set to Pacific Standard Time, so when we travel to another country in another time zone, our clocks are out of sync with local time.
In order to reset your body’s internal clock, you should try to adjust as quickly as possible to your new schedule. Expose yourself to as much sunlight as possible during the first few days, especially in the morning. Make sure to drink plenty of fluids and eat regularly too, but avoid caffeine and alcohol. Being fatigued from jet lag can exacerbate any feelings of homesickness or sadness that you might feel in the first days. Remember that this is a normal reaction.
Common Traveler’s Illnesses
Colds, flu, diarrhea and other gastrointestinal troubles are the most common ailments affecting travelers. Travelers are also at increased risks of hepatitis A, tetanus, malaria, HIV, and more, depending on their location and behavior. Carry a basic first aid kit that includes medications to treat common illnesses such as diarrhea, hay fever or colds. If you suffer from gastrointestinal troubles for more than a few days, you should seek medical attention.
Food
Discovering new foods can be one of the great joys of traveling but these new foods can sometimes cause serious illness. Make sure you are informed about what is and what isn’t potentially risky. Should you eat uncooked vegetables and fruits? Can you drink the water? Ask your resident director and host family, if appropriate. Especially at the beginning of your stay abroad, err on the side of caution when it comes to eating and drinking. Becoming accustomed to different kinds of food, portions, and meal times always takes some time. If you get sick from anything you eat, please discuss this with the resident director and always follow the precautions suggested by the program regarding food and water.
Environmental Conditions
If you are in a climate you are not used to, observe how locals dress and do the same.Dressing in layers is important in colder climates, and keeping well-hydrated is especially important in hot climates.
Smoking is more prevalent in other countries/cultures outside the U.S. In addition, air pollution can be a problem to contend with in some cities (e.g. Beijing,Santiago, and Milan). Allergies can crop up unexpectedly when exposed to allergens your body is not equipped to deal with.
If you are used to Los Angeles, with its many days of sunshine, be aware that living in acity with fewer bright days can affect your mood and even contribute to depression.
Alcohol
Most countries where USC has programs abroad have lower drinking ages than the United States, but they all have very different attitudes toward consumption of alcohol and public drunkenness. In many cultures, public drunkenness is socially unacceptable. Learning about these attitudes will be part of your cultural adjustment. Sometimes students free from U.S. laws and attitudes toward alcohol slip into patterns of alcohol abuse while abroad. It is important for you to remember that alcohol and drugs can impair your judgment, especially while you are abroad in unfamiliar surroundings and can make you that much more vulnerable to unsafe sex, sexual assault, theft, and physical attacks or fights. Alcohol is used by offenders as a tool for incapacitating their victims. The majority of crimes and accidents involving study abroad students involve the excessive use of alcohol.
Other Drugs
Although alcohol is socially accepted in many countries outside of the United States, use of other drugs is almost never allowed. In some countries simple acquisition of prohibited drugs can result in heavy fines, deportation, or prison sentences. While you are abroad you will be subject to all local laws, and these can be very severe when it comes to illegal drugs.
If you are recovering from an alcohol or other substance abuse problem, you can find meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous and other support groups in many countries. Get locations and phone numbers before you go.
You may encounter clubs or other situations where marijuana, hashish and other drugs such as ecstasy, crystal meth, ketamine, GHB and the like are used more openly than you might see in the U.S. The sources of such drugs will be less familiar than any source you may have had in the U.S.; when you purchase or accept such drugs, you do not know exactly what you are getting and don’t know whom you can really trust. There have been cases of drugs being slipped into study abroad students’ beverages without their knowledge. Some of these drugs are known to sometimes trigger latent psychological problems such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, etc. It would be especially unwise to take such drugs without thoroughly educating yourself about all the risks involved. Drug dealers have been known to tip off police and get students arrested in hopes of getting a cut of a bribe or police protection. Besides, they are illegal in most countries. If you get arrested with illegal drugs in a foreign country, all the U.S. embassy can do is refer you to English-speaking lawyers and notify your family, and you will be subject to that country’s laws and jail conditions.
Intravenous Drug Use
In some countries, I.V. drug use among college-age students is more prevalent than in the US. Even if you steer clear of such drugs, remember that having sexual relations with a person using drugs intravenously could expose you to HIV and Hepatitis B and C.
Safer Sex
Always practice safer sex whether you are at home or abroad. But while you are overseas, being safe and careful in this area takes on a special urgency. Some extra challenges you will face are:
- Using a different language to negotiate and ensure safer sexual practices. You’ll find that even in other English-speaking countries, the vocabulary used in relation to sex is quite different from American English.
- Cultural norms and expectations in relation to sex.
- Your own level of judgment and decision-making. It’s interesting to see how some students who keep themselves well-guarded in the U.S. can become very flirtatious and careless abroad.
- Availability of information and types of protection.
If you think there is a chance that you will be sexually active while you are abroad, bring protection with you. Some safer sex supplies and contraceptive methods that are easily found here are not always available in other countries. For example, you may not be able to access certain kinds of implants or shots, certain kinds of birth control pills, “emergency” or “morning after” pills, sponges, reliable condoms, etc.
While they do not offer 100% protection against pregnancy, condoms are the easiest form of contraception to obtain around the world. Bottom line: if you have sex overseas, use a condom. Do NOT throw caution to the wind because you are in a totally new environment. Exercise good judgment, and weigh the risks (not just physical, but emotional too) of getting involved with someone overseas.
Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs)
Sexually transmitted infections (including HIV) may occur in higher percentages of the population or occur in quite different populations than in the U.S. After abstinence, condoms used properly are the best-known protection from exposure to STIs but cannot prevent all exposure to STIs. Some STIs (e.g. syphilis) can be spread through skin-to- skin contact. Consider getting vaccinated against HPV (human papillomavirus).
HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis B/C
AIDS, caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), breaks down the body’s immune system and leads to infections and cancers that may be fatal. Be aware that the HIV virus is present in virtually every country. There are no known vaccines to prevent HIV infection. No one should put himself or herself at risk of contracting HIV.
Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by the Hepatitis C virus (HCV) found in persons who have the disease. HCV is spread by contact with the blood of an infected person. There is no vaccine for the prevention of HCV infection. Hepatitis B, however, is preventable. The Hepatitis B virus (HBV) can cause lifelong infection, cirrhosis, liver cancer, liver failure, and death. So get vaccinated!
The risk of getting HIV, Hepatitis B/C depends on you. Here are some general precautions you can follow anywhere in the world:
- Avoid contact with others’ semen (including “pre-cum”), vaginal secretions, and blood. Either abstain from sexual activity or practice safer sex.
- USE A CONDOM. Men and women should both carry their own condoms.
- Have water-based lubricants available if needed.
- Do not share needles and syringes or use ones that may have been used previously.
- If you need an injection at a hospital, ask to see the needle removed from its original (new) packaging.
- Avoid excessive drug and alcohol use, as intoxication impairs judgment and negotiation skills in sexual situations
Getting tested for HIV in a foreign country can be a scary experience but does not have to be. International SOS or local AIDS organizations can provide information on testing locations, policies and procedures. If you are currently HIV positive, consult very carefully with your health care providers regarding your study abroad plans. Some countries will not issue visas to people with HIV/AIDS.
Literature and supplies (condoms, etc.) for safer sex are available at the Office for Wellness and Health Promotion in the Student Health Center (2nd Floor). Call 213-740-4777 for more information.
Blood Transfusions
Not all countries have mandatory screening of donated blood for the HIV virus. In some locales, ascertaining the availability of HIV screened blood and blood products may be difficult. Hepatitis C is also transmissible through unscreened blood. Because of obvious uncertainties, consider these precautions: If you are injured or ill while abroad, avoid or postpone any blood transfusion unless it is absolutely necessary. If you do need blood, try to ensure that screened blood is used.
Injections
In some countries even disposable equipment is reused. In some places, if an injection is required, you can buy needles and syringes and bring them to the hospital for your own use. Avoid injections unless absolutely necessary.
The Center for Disease Control recommends that diabetics or other persons who require routine or frequent injections carry a supply of syringes and needles sufficient to last their stay abroad. But carrying needles and syringes without a prescription may be illegal in some countries. Take a note from your doctor.
Further information regarding diabetes and study abroad
Tattoos
Should you decide to get a tattoo overseas, please make sure that all tattoo instruments are sterile and that the ink supply is fresh and has not been used on someone else.
In a Crisis
If you or another student on your program are having a health emergency, go immediately to the nearest local hospital (however, for non-urgent matters, please use International SOS to setup an appointment with a local physician instead). When the situation is more stable and the student is safe, contact International SOS to setup a case file and to receive further resources. To open a case, check your ISOS card for the phone number to the nearest ISOS call center. ISOS will ask for USC’s membership number, which is 11BSGC000010. Be sure to make a note of the case number they give you.
You should also contact USC Student Affairs for crisis management and notify your Resident Director and/or the Office of Overseas Studies. If you prefer to make an anonymous report on behalf of another student, you can report your concerns to Trojans Care for Trojans (TC4T).