Oceania - travel vaccination advice
Article
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Vaccination against various diseases is recommended when travelling to most Pacific Islands. The vaccines depend on the destination, type of accommodation, sanitary conditions, length of stay and the general health of the traveller.
Malaria precautions are essential in some of the Pacific Islands. Avoid mosquito bites by covering up with clothing such as long sleeves and long trousers especially after sunset, using insect repellents on exposed skin and, when necessary, sleeping under a mosquito net. In addition, antimalarial tablets are recommended when travelling to some of the Pacific Islands.
People who are unsure if they have had the MMR vaccine or whether they have had measles, mumps or rubella are recommended to take the MMR vaccine.
International travel can be divided into two main groups
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GROUP I |
Business and tourist travel to cities and tourist resorts, staying in standard tourist-class hotels with good food hygiene and adequate sanitary conditions. |
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GROUP II |
Long-term foreign travel or residence in areas with poor hygiene and sanitation, and / or close and prolonged contact with locals. Such as work, backpacking trips, immigrants on a visit to their former homeland. |
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( ): Parentheses around the abbreviation means that the proposed prevention should be considered individually depending on the trip type and local geographic and seasonal variations in disease prevalence. In addition, the traveller's health, age and previous immunisation status should be considered. |
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Abbreviations used
- dTP-IPV: Diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and polio vaccine
- Hep A: Hepatitis A vaccine
- Hep B: Hepatitis B vaccine
- Typh: Typhoid vaccine
- J: Japanese encephalitis vaccine
- Rab: Rabies vaccine
- BCG: Tuberculosis vaccine
| DESTINATION | GROUP I | GROUP II |
| Australia (Cape York and islands in Torres Strait) | dTP-IPV* |
dTP-IPV* |
| Rest of Australia, New Zealand | dTP-IPV* | dTP-IPV* |
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French Polynesia (including Tahiti), Niue, Tonga, Samoa |
dTP-IPV* |
dTP-IPV* Hep A Typh |
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Fiji, Guam, Palau |
dTP-IPV* |
dTP-IPV* Hep A Typh (BCG) |
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Christmas Island, Cook Islands, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Norfolk Island, New Caledonia, Pitcairn Islands, Wallis and Futuna Islands |
dTP-IPV* |
dTP-IPV* Hep A Typh |
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Kiribati, Micronesia, Nauru, Northern Mariana Islands, Tuvalu, Vanuatu |
dTP-IPV* |
dTP-IPV* Hep A Typh (BCG) |
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Tokelau |
dTP-IPV* |
dTP-IPV* Measles*** |
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Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands |
dTP-IPV* Hep A |
dTP-IPV* Hep A |
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American Samoa |
dTP-IPV* |
dTP-IPV* |
| Papua New Guinea |
dTP-IPV* |
dTP-IPV* Hep A Typh (Hep B) (BCG) (J) |
* Everybody should be vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough) and poliomyelitis. Adults who have had the basic vaccinations should have a booster dose against these diseases every 10 years.
***American Samoa, Solomon Islands, Marshall Islands and Tokelau have introduced a requirement for documented measles vaccination to avoid large measles outbreaks. The authorities require travellers born in 1957 or later to prove that they are vaccinated against measles more than two weeks before arrival.