Grabowski P, Behrens R H
Department of Tourism and Leisure, University of Luton, UK.
Trop Med Int Health. 1996 Oct;1(5):730-2. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3156.1996.tb00102.x.
A study to assess the frequency of health related advice provided by travel consultants to customers planning to travel to the tropics was undertaken. A total of 202 agencies throughout the UK were visited by covert researchers requesting a package holiday for 2 weeks to Kenya or a flight to India. In a face to face consultation, the researchers recorded any health related information provided. If none were forthcoming, the agent was prompted using a standardized prompt. Thirty per cent of the agencies were based in South-east England and London and the remainder in the North, the Midlands and the South-west. No spontaneous health warnings were given in 61% (123) of consultations for malarious destinations. After prompting, 71% of agents gave general health advice, 67% suggested seeking malaria advice from a general practitioner and 37% of agents brought up the need for malaria prophylaxis for the journey. 63% of consultations included a mention of malaria after being prompted. The study reveals that travel agents provide health advice inconsistently and mention health risks only when prompted. For travellers' safety and to meet new consumer regulations, the travel industry needs to draw attention to health risks associated with its products consistently and effectively.
一项评估旅行社顾问向计划前往热带地区旅行的客户提供健康相关建议的频率的研究开展了。英国各地共有202家旅行社被暗访研究人员拜访，研究人员要求预订为期两周的肯尼亚包价度假游或前往印度的航班。在面对面咨询中，研究人员记录了提供的任何与健康相关的信息。如果没有提供任何信息，就会使用标准化提示语来提示旅行社工作人员。30%的旅行社位于英格兰东南部和伦敦，其余的分布在北部、中部和西南部。在针对有疟疾风险目的地的咨询中，61%（123次）没有自发给出健康警告。经过提示后，71%的工作人员给出了一般健康建议，67%建议向全科医生咨询疟疾相关事宜，37%的工作人员提到了旅行期间需要进行疟疾预防。提示后，63%的咨询提到了疟疾。该研究表明，旅行社提供健康建议的情况并不一致，只有在被提示时才会提及健康风险。为了旅行者的安全并符合新的消费者法规，旅游业需要持续且有效地提醒人们注意与其产品相关的健康风险。
