Most apparent disasters are not disasters at all; and illnesses rarely cause more than a hiccough in your travel plans or a bit of a mess. However, you can be more prepared to cope, should you have to by:-

Following our EMERGENCY CHECKLIST and by taking with you a copy of our favourite travel health guide, This is an absolutely excellent source of information for travelling parents and I never go anywhere with out it.

It is a down to earth guide for anyone travelling overseas with children, whether on a two-week family holiday or a long-stay posting in the developing world. The approach is both reassuring and practical, showing how to deal with situations ranging from the relatively minor to life-threatening emergencies.

The part of the book which deals with the treatment of illness and accidents in travelling children describes the full range of possible illnesses, from trivial to serious, not to alarm you but so that you can assess the situation rationally if your child is ill. The text is designed to be used in isolation, but always seek competent medical advice if you can.

It is possible that you child may lose so much blood after an accident that a blood transfusion is required; but this is risky since HIV (AIDS) and several other unpleasant infections are common and testing blood is still patchy, although the Red Cross are working hard to help introduce screening worldwide.

Within the first hours of an injury lost blood can be replaced with artificial solutions, which are free of the risk of infection as long as the needles and equipment are clean. If doctors want to transfuse your child with blood you should check with the senior doctor available that this cannot wait emergency evacuation.

If blood transfusion is urgently necessary, offer yourself as a donor. Establishing the blood group of all family members to see who could donate to who is a good idea and then fill the details in on travellingwithchildrens

The Blood Care Foundation claims to be able to courier "fully screened and tested blood to it's members anywhere in the world in an emergency,

Hospitals in the USA are so concerned about being sued by their patients they have special staff assigned to assist in the setting up of Medical Power of Attorney; this is a normal procedure and applies to Americans as well as visitors. Hospital Treatment in the USA.

Before you leave forward all your Email to Yahoo/Excite etc. That way you can send and read your mail at Internet cafes or at friends with web access while you travel.

Print 1 copy for each of your children and fill in the blanks. Then photocopy the checklist 3 times keep one copy for yourself and give one copy to your partner or travelling companion and leave one at home with your emergency contact there.

It may seem a bit over the top but the time your child falls seriously ill is the time you're least prepared to think calmly. Its far easier to refer to a list, already prepared, so you can communicate vital information to a doctor, nurse, paramedic, insurance company or consulate.

Consider the idea of scanning copies all your travel documentation, airline tickets, tour operators invoices, insurance certificates etc etc, onto the internet, so if you lose all of your possessions, you can still get all the information, booking reference numbers etc within minutes of finding an internet cafe. You can set up a Hotmail or Yahoo! account and simply send yourself a message with the scans attached.

Medicines are often prescribed by calculating the dosage per pound or kilo of your Childs weight, or sometimes by height, so fill this in a day or so before you leave so that it is up to date.

Ask your GP; if your Child has a continuing medical condition; as you should take a clinical summary with you.

Record any known allergic reaction your child has had to prescribed medicines, over the counter remedies or to insect stings and bites as well as food. This information may help medical staff to establish the reason for a seizure or if a child has stopped breathing.

Immunisations make sure you include any information on negative reactions to any immunisation such as seizure, high fever or severe discomfort.

There are many combinations of medicines that can be dangerous or fatal to a child. This is why medical staff need to know what medicines you child was taking at the time of the accident before they can administer another drug. Note down dosages and frequencies.

Get your doctor to write a spare prescription for your child using the drugs generic name, as brand names differ from country to country.