As promised last week, in this post I'm going to write more about the medical aspects of my trip across Europe. The first thing I had to do before I left England was plan my route so that I could buy the travel/health insurance that would encompass all the countries that I planned on visiting. This was an aspect of the trip that was a difficult to stomach as naturally the insurance quotes I initially received were sometimes in excess of £400 and yet my friends were only quoted to pay £10! However, my consultants recommended a few insurers that have specialised policies for people with cancer and a whole list can be found on the Macmillan Cancer Support website whose link I shall leave at the bottom of the page. After calling all insurance suppliers that were recommended to me, my best price was quoted by Freedom Travel Insurance at just under £150, which, while still expensive, was the cheapest policy by almost £70, again, the link to their specific website is below.
After securing extensive health insurance, I then made sure that I had enough chemotherapy with me on the trip to last all 21 days and that I had a few extra "spare days" just in case of an emergency. I was a little unsure whether airport security would question my multitude of unmarked white tablets, but I wasn't stopped or questioned in a single country. However, just to err on the side of caution, my consultants at Gloucester Hospital had written letters for me in 2 or 3 different languages which explained my treatment and what to do in case of an emergency.
My consultants had also wanted me to take a blood test while I was away, to make sure that I suddenly hadn't become neutropenic and become more susceptible to infection and illness. Therefore, my friends and I planned the first half of our trip meticulously so that on the morning of the 6th day, I was in Berlin and could get the results I needed. However, I would urge people who are being told that they similarly need to take a blood test abroad to do 2 things. The first being that it is very important to take a European Health Insurance Card as without it, the blood test would have cost me in the region of £350. Secondly, call the hospital prior to visiting. I didn't call ahead and just turned up at the first German hospital I could find, which actually turned out to be a sexual health clinic so was told to go across the road to the main building! Once I was in the right place however, my results for one finger prick took 6 hours to arrive which I could have easily avoided by calling ahead.
Daunting though it may have seemed at first, I would strongly urge people not to be put off by insurance companies and other obstacles when planning trips abroad, I still had a fantastic time away despite the extra precautions due to my health.
http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinformation/Livingwithandaftercancer/Practicalissues/Travel/Companies.aspx
http://www.freedominsure.co.uk/
great blog Will
ReplyDelete