Travelling with Dementia

Travelling should be an enjoyable experience for everybody including the friends and family of a dementia patient and the patient themselves.  By taking the following steps you will be able to plan stress free travels for dementia sufferers, their family and friends.

It is important to plan holidays/travels for dementia patients carefully, when planning travels family and friends must always consider how a patient’s dementia affects their daily life when deciding the right type of holiday.

In the early stages of dementia, the patient may still enjoy travelling however as the disease progresses travel may begin to become too stressful or overwhelming.

When taking into account the travel requirements of a person with dementia and the best mode of transport to take them to a destination it is important to consider:

• Going with whichever option causes the least anxiety and discomfort
• Trying to stick with things that are familiar with the individual for example, travelling to known destinations before the onset of dementia are likely to cause less stress and confusion

General travel safety tips for traveling with dementia include:

New destinations are likely to trigger a patient to wander, preparing for this in advance may include enrolling the patient in initiatives such as MedicAlert a 24-hour nationwide emergency response service

• Have a bag of essentials with the patient including medication, change of clothes and water at all times
• Pack up to date medical information including: a list of emergency contacts and photo copies of important legal documentation
• Warn staff of wherever you are staying of your specific needs so they can be prepared to assist you.

In the event of a medical emergency fees abroad are likely to be costly, therefore carrying out proper research before a dementia patients travels and properly researching and buying travel insurance that covers dementia patients fully is suggested. Fit 2 Trip’s travel insurance offers medical only, cancellation only and travel only policies in and outside of Europe from as little as €5.

Fit 2 Trip travel insurance specialise in travel insurance for adults and children with pre-existing health conditions in and outside of Europe such as dementia, diabetes, cancer and hypertension. Fit 2 Trip are one of the only travel insurance providers in Europe that cover adults and children with pre-existing health conditions.

Back