Bali Health -
Avoiding bad holiday
memories...
If
you are not from a tropical country then you should consider several
Bali Health issues. Read the following carefully to prevent ending up
in
bed during your whole holiday
or bringing home some kind of disease as a souvenir.
Bali Health - Travel insurance
First
of all to prevent any extra hassle always arrange a good travel
insurance. If something does happen to you during your
travels, the
last thing you want to worry about is where you'll end up.
With a good
travel insurance you will be able to receive private Bali health care and
even be sent
to Singapore if treatment in Bali is not possible.
Additionally
if you are already on medication or when you are pregnant then you
should
get appropriate advice from you general practitioner before leaving.
Remember not to check-in your medicine at the airport in case your
suitcase gets lost.
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Bali Health - Clinics
Before I start to list what kind
of diseases you are able to get when going to Bali, let me start with
reassuring you first. Bali
has really good health clinics with modern
equipment and English speaking doctors.
So if the unfortunate thing
happens and you end up in one of the Bali clinics, you will be in good
hands.
Here are three popular
international oriented clinics:
BIMC Hospital is
located near Kuta and the international Airport. They have primary
health care service plus 24 hour emergency medical services.
You can
find them on Jl. By Pass Ngurah Rai No. 100x. Tel: 62-361-764345. You
can also visit the
BIMC website for more details.
SOS
International is also located in Kuta area and
provides comprehensive primary health care and 24-hour
emergency
medical services. Their address is Jl. By Pass Ngurah Rai, Denpasar.
Tel: 62-361-710505. For more detailed information check the
SOS bali website
If you are staying around Ubud then you have the Ubud Clinic on Jl.
Raya Ubud No. 36 Campuhan. Tel:62-361-974911.
You can read more about their facilities and treatments on the Ubud
Clinic website.
An other option in Ubud is the Toya Medika Clinic, which
receives patients 24h every day of the week. It is located on the other
side of town on Jalan Raya Pengosekan. Tel:62-361-978078
The general
emergency
numbers in Bali are:
police 110, ambulance 118 and fire department 113. You can also dial
112 to get
an operator who will assist you further.
Cleaning a
dog's bite at Toya Medika Clinic, Ubud
Ok,
that's that. So let's start with the Bali health diseases that you should watch out
for. I hope they don't freak you out because with some minor action and
precautions they can be easily prevented.
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Bali Health - The Bali Belly
The most famous
disease that you can get quite easily is the Bali Belly. Basically the
Bali Belly is stomach cramps together with diarrhea. All in all
it can bring
misery to your holiday.
You often don’t know how you got it but the only
thing you can do is
to start using re-hydration salt solutions available at the drugstores
and to drink as much water from the bottle as possible, even when
brushing your teeth.
If you can't even make it to the drugstores
anymore use 8 teaspoons
of sugar and half a teaspoon of salt in a liter of water and get in
contact with the local doctor as soon as possible.
Don't use drugs such as Imodium or Lomotil since
these only
constipate your system, handy when you have a long flight but not when
you're on holiday.
In this case,
don't do as the locals do...
You
can get
the Bali Belly by contaminated water, eating food that is not well
prepared or fruit that
is not washed properly.
Basically it depends per person, some have more
sensitive
stomachs while others have a stomach like a rock.
It is difficult to say where you should
eat to prevent getting the runs. You might expect that it will be safe
to eat at a fancy hotel, but sometimes the food there is less fresh
then the 'warung' around the corner.
The warung prepares its food right
on the spot and has more visitors so they will use fresh
ingredients more regularly.
Therefore I prefer
to choose places where it is crowded. Besides, where there is a large
crowd there must be great food too, right?
Also
never drink tap water when in Bali. Instead buy bottled water or buy
water at water refill stations.
Some people advice against
using
ice cubes in drinks but I
personally think you’ll not get diarrhea from this.
Even local people
would get sick if they don’t use proper water for ice cubes.
So it’s OK to use ice in drinks but be careful with
ice-cream though.
Enjoy a cold
drink with ice!
So just make sure that your food is
always freshly prepared and that you avoid drinking tapped water at
all cost. If you keep that in mind you'll be fine...
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Bali Health - Malaria and Dengue fever
Mosquitoes
and the tropics come in one package. Fortunately today there is little
risk of malaria in Bali so you don't need to take any
pills to prevent
catching it.
But always get the most recent Bali health advice on this disease
before you leave
because it can be fatal if you don't get any treatment as soon as
possible.
The symptoms are fever, headache and shivering often
coming in cycles. These symptoms can also occur after you get back from
your holiday so make sure your consult a doctor immediately.
To
prevent catching this serious disease sleep under a mosquito
net, especially if you can't close the windows properly. Don't
forget to spray within the net with anti-mosquito spray a
couple of hours before going to bed.
Indonesian
repellents are just as good!
In
good resorts, hotels etc. you don't really need a mosquito net as they
use other means to extinguish these nasty insects.
Additionally if there are many mosquitoes remember to use
repellent and during dusk wear long sleeves and pants since during this
time of day the malaria mosquito is the most active.
Another
disease transmitted through mosquitoes is dengue fever. Unlike malaria,
there are no tablets available which will prevent you from getting it.
In Indonesia outbreaks
of
dengue fever is common and it can easily occur in Bali as
well. Make
sure to check for the most recent information concerning dengue fever.
The
symptoms are fever, headache, rash, joint and muscle pains. If it
progresses
it can lead to internal bleeding and circulatory system
failure. So
seek a doctor as soon as possible if you happen to have these symptoms.
An
important thing to remember when heading to the doctors is that if a
rash is ascent the symptoms can be easily diagnosed as a common flu.
So stress that you have been to the tropics when visiting your doctor.
Like malaria,
dengue can be prevented by using a mosquito net and applying repellent.
These mosquitoes are however more active during the day and breed
around
water collections such as puddles in water tanks, used tires and flower
pots.
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Bali health - Rabies
In
Bali you will see dogs everywhere. Unlike the dogs you might be used
to back home, the Bali dog can look really hideous. Once you see them
you
can only expect them to carry all kind of diseases.
However if the
dog looks cute or not, always try to avoid contact as it can carry
rabies.
These dogs are the nice looking ones in Bali...
Rabies is spread via the saliva of dogs, cats and
monkeys. If you get bitten wash the wound immediately with soap and
seek medical
assistance. Getting vaccinations against rabies can prevent extensive
treatments.
I
got bitten by a dog in Bali once. Luckily for me the dog was vaccinated
and
it regularly visited the vet. The owner told me though that many
Balinese
in the area had died from rabies.
The symptoms only occur two months
after the bite
and by that time treatment is too late. So be careful.
Generally the dogs are harmless in Bali. If you just walk by without
surprising them then you have nothing to be afraid of.
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Bali Health - Hepatitis
A and B Fortunately
there are vaccinations that can prevent Hepatitis A and B. So it is
wise to head to the doctors for some injections.
Hepatitis A is
transmitted via contaminated food and water or saliva. So you can
imagine how easily you can become a victim.
Hepatitis B is
transmitted via sexual contact or by contaminated blood. Therefore
always use condoms and ensure that needles and syringes are sterilized
before receiving treatment.
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Bali Health - AIDS/HIV
Bali,
Java and West Papua are the most affected islands of Indonesia. Exact
numbers of AIDS/HIV affected people are not clear for Bali, but
unfortunately
the numbers are increasing. Also realize that other travelers
can
be affected as well.
Condoms
are available in Bali however they can be
unreliable. So if you think you would be needing some on your trip to
Bali bring some from your own country.
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Bali Health - Tropical
sun
Don't
underestimate the sun in the tropics. Even on a cloudy day you can get
seriously sunburnt and dehydrated. Read more about sun
exposure and how
to prevent it.
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Bali Health - Other
diseases
Generally European, American and Australian travelers
don't have to worry about diseases such as polio, tetanus, diphtheria
and tuberculosis since they have had inoculations when they were
young.
However
if you are not sure if you ever had any injections for
these diseases, make sure you check with your doctor before leaving for
Bali.
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Bali Health - Hygiene
When
staying in resorts, hotels or even homestays you can expect that the
hygienic conditions are similar to the standards back home.
But I just
want to mention something that you should know to avoid unpleasant
surprises.
It's
about the toilets...
Like
I said all
the accommodation and nice restaurants are pretty clean. But if you plan
to go touring around the island or want to visit some temples and you
need to use the use
public toilets then you should be prepared.
Generally
there are Western-style toilets, but occasionally you will encounter a
squat toilet. On top of that, sometimes the toilets do not flush
automatically. Instead you have to scoop some water with a small bucket
in order to flush it all away.
And
if there is no toilet
paper, the same small bucket is used to wash yourself. Very uncommon in
most countries, but the Indonesians do not use toilet paper.
Instead
they wash themselves using their left hand (that is why this hand is
considered unclean).
Especially
for woman travelers, it is maybe a good
idea to always have tissue or a role of toilet paper in your bag. And
to be super hygienic maybe you want to bring some antibacterial hand cream too.
There is usually soap but I always get this feeling that
they add a lot of water to it.
But
don't worry, these kind of
toilet encounters are usually in the villages far from the tourist
crowds. Places like Kuta, Ubud, Candidasa etc have all good toilet
facilities.
Some are even beautifully designed with statues and
flowers....so you might be surprised too.
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