Travel and inr

liamty · Sep 4, 2005

Hi, long time no write..thats me, anyway out of sight isn't necessarily out of mind!
We are coming to visit your country, in 12 days actually, and as Steve (the warfarinised one) hasn't travelled in as many different time changes as this holiday, we are after some advise for his meds. We leave Sydney(Aus) at 3.40pm and arrive LA at 2.40pm same day! The time changes as we travel within the US will be more managable I think, but the arriving and leaving (we lose a day) are a little more challenging. We obvoiusly will leave a watch set on Australian time, but still need to adjust to US times. Any ideas?
Also we are bringing our coagucheck machine, are supplies for it readily available from pharmacies over there? Not surprisingly our travel insurance wouldn't cover him for his INR.
Lastly I have just checked dates for the reunion...we are headed to Las Vegas, but will miss you all by a coulpe of weeks!! A bit frustrating!!
Donna

geebee · Sep 4, 2005

Donna,

If it isn't too confusing, I would just have Steve use Australian time for his warfarin doses (unless, of course, it might hit in the middle of the night here). His body is already regulated on that time and there would be no adjustment then needed when you return home.

I am sure you can find the supplies. You might want to contact QAS to find out if maybe they can arrange to ship to your hotel. They get supplies out very fast.

What states are you planning on visiting?

liamty · Sep 4, 2005

We are doing the touristy thing, Los Angeles, New York, Niagara Falls, Las Vegas, San Fransisco. Longest times staying in LA, NY, and San Fran. And would like to get fresh test strips by the end of the four weeks we are away. Unfortunately the time differences are almost like night and day eg.

Australia East
+ 15.0 H USA EAST
+ 16.0 H USA CENTRAL
+ 18.0 H USA PACIFIC

geebee · Sep 4, 2005

Sounds like a great trip. I hope you have a wonderful time.

As far as the warfarin goes here's a suggestion. If Steve currently takes his dose in the morning, he should take it in the evening during the trip (or vice-versa). That should keep him close to Australian time without too much thought about the process. 5 or 6 hours one way or the other won't matter over the course of 4 weeks.

Guest · Sep 4, 2005

The key to warfarin management is routine. The idea of the trip is to get out of the old routine. Therefore, you can almost guarantee that he will get out of range. You have a CoaguChek, so you will be able to keep track. Just the US part of the trip would be enough to get most people out of line. However, out of range does not equate with disaster. The odds are very great that everything will work out OK. CoaguChek supplies are not readily available here. You need to make arrangements in advance.