Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #111413

Jeannette Burgos, BS, CHES¹, Yasamin M. Brown, MPH¹, Pauline Thomas, MD², Zofia Leszczyniecka, MS, REHS¹, Claire C. Baruxis, MS, REHS¹, Paula Valenzuela, BA¹, Peter N. Wenger, MD², Douglas Saphier, MPH², and Nimi Kadar, BA². (1) Newark Department of Health and Human Services, 110 William Street, Newark, NJ 07102, 973-733-7643, jburgos@njlincs.net, (2) University of Medicine and Dentistry of NewJersey, 185 South Orange Avenue, Newark, NJ 07103

Previous research indicates that homebound travelers visiting relatives and friends perceive less personal risk or threat from travel-related disease than tourists and thus, do not seek healthcare prior to departure. Newark, the largest city in the State of New Jersey has a population of 273,546. Out of the total population, 24.1% are foreign-born (7.8% naturalized citizens). In 2004, 21 reportable communicable diseases were linked to travel, including 10 Hepatitis A cases, 8 cases of Malaria, and 3 of Dengue Fever. Travelers had visited relatives and friends in Africa, South Asia, South, Latin and Central America, and the Caribbean. We determined that the burden of travel-related preventable communicable diseases warranted intervention by the Newark Department of Health and Human Services. Staff from the Divisions of Surveillance and Prevention, and Health Education worked together to develop an intervention to promote pre-departure medical care, including advice and prophylactic measures about preventable infections. The intervention includes: placing travel advisory posters in neighborhood supermarkets, community centers, and religious centers; writing press releases for local newspapers; meeting with community leaders within various ethnic areas; and providing information to health care providers (through personal contact, group presentations, faxes and e-mails. We present the success rates for these interventions and the plan for evaluation. As global travel and migration continues to increase, public health and healthcare professionals will need to address this emerging health concern.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize the increasing burden of communicable diseases among foreign-born U.S. residents who travel home to visit relatives and friends.
• Identify the potential and limitations of implementing interventions to reduce travel-related illness among travelers returning to their country of origin.
• Develop similar intervention programs in other multi-cultural jurisdictions.

Keywords: International Health, Infectious Diseases

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.