WHAT VACCINATIONS ARE NEEDED?

Depending on your destination and the conditions in which you travel – comfortable or adventurous – some vaccines are highly recommended and others are mandatory.

Vaccines do not protect against all infectious diseases, but they offer the safest protection against some tropical diseases such as:

typhus
diphtheria
yellow fever
hepatitis A
tetanus (this vaccine is also recommended in more moderate areas)

Where and when should you be vaccinated?

It is preferable to make an appointment with your attending doctor at least six months before your departure. He or she will mainly check whether:

your vaccines are still sufficiently effective and repeat the vaccination if necessary
your vaccinations still offer enough protection for your travel destination and, if necessary, administer new vaccines.

Some vaccines, such as the one against yellow fever, are only administered in an authorized travel medicine center (external link). The centres are spread all over the country. In some centers, the medical staff may also:

prescribe appropriate treatment for diseases for which there is no vaccine (malaria, dengue, dysentery, etc.)
Give advice on a hygienic and healthy lifestyle (time difference, drinking water, contraceptives, etc.)
Help to assemble your travel pharmacy

International vaccination certificate

Your doctor will provide you with an international vaccination certificate that lists the administered vaccines and the vaccination dates. This valid certificate is required in order to gain access to different countries: you must be able to present it together with your identity documents.

To get a quick idea of what vaccinations are needed, you can find information on this site: The tropical institute of medicine.

https://www.itg.be/N/reisgeneeskunde

But you can always get the vaccinations in a recognised vaccination centre near your home. Here are the addresses where you can go.

FLANDERS

Instituut voor tropische geneeskunde – Travel Clinic
Kronenburgstraat 43/3, 2000 Antwerpen
Tel. 03 247 64 05 of travelphone 0900 10 110

AZ Sint Jan – Travel Clinic
Ruddershove 10, 8000 Brugge
Tel. 050 45 23 10

UZ Gent – Travel Clinic, Dienst Algemene Inwendige Ziekten, Polikliniek 2
De Pintelaan 185, 9000 Gent
Tel. 09 332 23 50

Vaccinatiecentrum – Virga Jesseziekenhuis
Stadsomvaart 11, 3500 Hasselt
Tel. 011 30 97 40

UZ Leuven, Gasthuisberg Dienst Algemene Interne Geneeskunde
Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven
Tel. 016 34 47 75

Vaccinatiecentrum van het Jan Ypermanziekenhuis
Briekestraat 12, 8900 Ieper
Tel. 057 35 71 80

WalloniA

CHU – Charleroi – Polyclinique de l’hôpital civil de Charleroi
Boulevard Zoé Drion, 6000 Charleroi
Tel. 071 92 23 07

Chirec Site de Braine-l’Alleud Waterloo
Rue Wayez 35, 1420 Braine-l’Alleud
Tel. 02 389 04 48

Centre hospitalier régional
Avenue Albert 1er 185, 5000 Namur
Tel. 081 72 69 05

Centre universitaire Ambroise Paré
Boulevard Kennedy 2, 7000 Mons
Tel. 065 39 39 39 – 065 39 29 13

Service de Médecine du Voyage
Place de la République Française 1, 4020 Liège
Tel. 04 230 69 26 (op afspraak)

CHU de Liège, Médecine des voyageurs – Polyclinique Sart Tilman
Domaine Universitaire B 35, 4000 Liège
Tel. 04 366 77 86

CHU de Liège, Médecine des voyageurs – Polyclinique Brull
Quai Godefroid Kurth 45, 4000 Liège
Tel. 04 270 31 52

Centre des Vaccinaties, Clinique St. Pierre
Av. Reine Fabiola 9, 1340 Ottignies-Louvain-La-Neuve
Tel. 010 43 73 70 – 010 43 72 11

Centre Médical, Clinique St. Pierre
Rue du Pont St.-Jean 2, 1300 Wavre
Tel. 010 23 29 10 – 010 43 73 70

CHU Mont-Godinne UCL
Rue du Docteur G. Thérasse 1, 5530 Yvoir
Tel. 081 42 34 81

Travel Clinic
Rue des Conceptionnistes 3, 1400 Nivelles
Tel. 067 84 06 92

Clinique du Sud Luxembourg
Rue des Déportés 137, 6700 Arlon
Tel. 063 23 17 00

BrusselS

Travel Clinic César De Paepe
Cellebroersstraat 13, 1000 Brussel
Tel. 02 535 33 43

Travel Clinic, U.Z. Erasmus
Lenniksestraat 808, 1070 Brussel
Tel. 02 555 47 08

Centrum voor Reis- en Vaccinatieadvies UZ Brussel
Laarbeeklaan 101, 1090 Brussel
Tel. 02 477 60 01 (volwassenen) – 02 477 60 61 (kinderen)

Vaccinatiecentrum, Cliniques Universitaires St.-Luc
Av. Hippocrate 10, 1200 Brussel
Tel. 02 764 21 22

Polikliniek UVC Brugmann
Van Gehuchtenplein 4, 1020 Laken
Tel. 02 477 30 35

Chirec Site Leopoldspark
Froissartstraat 38, 1040 Brussel
Tel. 02 287 50 66

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YOUR TRAVEL PHARMACY

essential ingredients

A painkiller, a remedy for diarrhoea or antipyretics: these are common remedies in Belgium, but abroad they are not always available or they have a different name. It is therefore wise to bring a limited basic pharmacy with you when you travel.

If you have a chronic illness, your travel pharmacy must of course contain your usual medicines. Bring enough of these medicines with you and also bring an extra prescription: this way, you will also be prepared for the unforeseen. If you are wearing glasses, it is also useful to have a copy of the ophthalmologist’s prescription with you.

Ideally, your travel pharmacy should also contain:

anti-diarrhoea drugs (useful for ‘tourista’)
a means of disinfecting cuts and other wounds
compresses and bandages
a remedy for travel sickness
a sun lotion with a high sun protection factor
a fever thermometer
paracetamol for pain and fever

Don’t forget your contraceptive. In some countries, condoms are not as easy to get as they are in Belgium. Moreover, the quality is often dubious!

Customized treatments

Depending on the characteristics of the journey you want to make – the destination, the type of accommodation, the travel companions, etc. – you should also take the following items with you:

Soap that you can use to disinfect your hands without using water
a means of disinfecting and cleaning non-potable water
sachets of oral rehydration salts to treat acute diarrhoea by children
a corticosteroid ointment that reduces skin inflammation
a mosquito repellent containing DEET and a mosquito net impregnated with permetrine
a treatment that prevents malaria in areas at risk

The doctor you consult before your departure may also prescribe antibiotics or antihistamines (against allergic reactions) if necessary.

Useful information

In case of an emergency, information about your health can be useful to local doctors and nurses. So don’t forget to bring an English text that contains the following information:

the disease(s) you are suffering from
the treatment you are taking (name of the product, dose, etc.)
hypersensitivities or allergies you suffer from
your blood type

If you have to take many medicines or disposable syringes with you, ask your doctor to draw up a detailed list of them. If necessary, you can submit this list to customs.

Source: https://www.belgium.be/nl/gezondheid/op_reis/reisapotheek

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