Immunization Frquently Asked Questions
What will my visit cost? Answer
Can I know before my visit what vaccines will be recommended for my trip? Answer
Will my insurance cover your charges? Answer
What are my payment options? Answer
What should I expect at my visit? Answer
Which vaccines are available? Answer
What about my International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylxis? Answer
What about malaria and cholera vaccines? Answer
What are Nashville Travel Medicine’s credentials? Answer
How far ahead of my trip should I get my immunizations? Answer
How many different vaccines may I receive on one visit? Answer
What side effects might I expect after receiving my vaccines? Answer
Answers:
There is a $65 charge for the travel medicine consultation. ($55 per person for 2 to 5 persons with the same travel itinerary seen as a group). This consultation is a one on one, face to face consultation with Dr. Felts. He will review your health history, medications, travel destinations, planned activities, and any special needs and will provide specific advice and answer your questions. He will also provide prescriptions for medications you may need for your trip such as malaria prevention medications, antibiotics for diarrhea, and altitude sickness prevention medication. Your vaccines will be administered at the end of the consultation. Charges for vaccines are based on our acquisition costs which vary from time to time. (See Vaccine Pricing for our charges for each vaccine.) This consultation typically lasts about 30 minutes. It is required if you are traveling to a new destination, but is not charged when you are returning for booster injecions.
We believe that we consistently charge significantly less for vaccines than any other source in middle Tennessee.
Yes, this information is available from the Centers for Disease Control website, which we encourage you to visit. Our recommendations generally are the same.
That depends, of course, on the benefits provided by your insurance policy. Some plans do not cover travel medicine services, or pay only a portion of the charges. We do not file any insurance or participate in any third party payer plan.
We will provide a record of your visit which you may file yourself to obtain reimbursement of any charges covered by your health insurance policy.
We accept cash, checks and credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover). We require payment in full at the time of service.
You will receive counseling as to the specific vaccines recommended for your travel based on your past immunization history, countries to be visited, anticipated activities, and duration of your stay. These recommendations will be based on the latest recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization, and our travel medicine software, Tropimed. You will receive those vaccines you desire.
You will also receive counseling on food and water precautions, malaria prophylaxis, management of travelers diarrhea, altitude sickness and other risks as appropriate for your destination and type of travel (tourist, business, adventure, long stays etc.).
Prescriptions for appropriate malaria prevention medication and for antibiotics to treat travelers diarrhea will be provided as needed based on your itinerary.
We keep in stock every vaccine that may be needed for travel to any country in the world. These include:
…..Hepatitis A
…..Hepatitis B
…..Twinrix (a combination Hepatitis A and B vaccines)
…..immune serum globulin (ISG)
…..tetanus/diphtheria
…..tetanus/diphtheria/pertussis
…..typhoid
…..meningococcal meningitis
…..pneumococcal pneumonia
…..MMR (measles, mumps, rubella)
…..varicella (Chickenpox)
…..rabies
…..influenza
…..Japanese encephalitis
…..yellow fever
…..cervical cancer (GARDASIL)
…..shingles (ZOSTAVAX)
…..TB skin test
We are a certified yellow fever vaccination center, and will provided your International Certificate of Vaccination if you receive yellow fever vaccine.
No effective vaccine has yet been developed for malaria. If you will be visiting an area of risk you will receive advice on how to minimize your risk and also a prescription for appropriate oral malaria prevention medication to take during your trip. No cholera vaccine is available in the United States, but fortunately the risk of cholera to travelers is negligible.
Nashville Travel Medicine is the only travel medicine clinic in Tennessee supervised by a physician who has received the International Society of Travel Medicine Certificate of Knowledge in Travel Health. We are a certified yellow fever vaccination center. We have been providing travel medicine services for over 8 years.
At least two weeks before travel if possible. Earlier is better as some vaccines such as Hepatitis B and Japanese Encephalitis require 3 doses and require longer intervals before travel to complete the series. Also for vaccines to be protective, your body’s immune system must produce protective antibodies in response to the vaccine. This takes about two weeks.
As many as you need. Five or six vaccines may be needed for travelers to some countries if their standard immunizations are not up to date.
Serious reactions are very rare. Some local tenderness or brief low grade fever may occur in some persons, but should not interfere with usual activities. For a complete listing of possible side effects as well as much other useful information, please visit the CDC Vaccine Information Sheets site where you may read and print out the most current information on each vaccine.