Planning Ahead: Elderly Air Travel
When traveling with people who are over the age of sixty, there are certain planning tips that can make the trips more pleasing to everyone in the travel party. When there is an elderly travel companion in the group, it is important to make sure that they are medically healthy enough to go on a trip of whatever length is being planned. The people going on the trip should get a thorough exam by their medical doctor and should tell the doctor where they are planning to go and what they are planning to do. In this way, the people can be more certain of different health precautions that might need to be taken before finishing the plans for elderly air travel. They can make sure that their prescriptions are filled, that they have travel insurance that covers health issues or accidents, and other coverage for health related issues. If they have Medicare or HMO health care plans, then they need to see what the steps are to obtain coverage overseas, and if such coverage is even available.
Tips
Elderly air travel requires that the airlines be notified ahead of time of any wheelchair needs or if the person uses a walker or cane. The airline tickets should be planned so that the connections are not too tight. In this way, the elderly person will not feel rushed when trying to make a connection to another flight. They will also have a vehicle or wheelchair and flight attendant to help to get them from one gate to another during the course of the trip.
The elderly air travel also requires that the baggage be packed carefully so that the essential items are in the carry on luggage rather than being checked beneath the plane. Items such as medications should always be readily available to the elderly people while traveling so that if there is lost luggage or delay their health is not affected by those exigencies. They also need to be advised to wear clothing that is loose so that circulation is free during the long times when the person has to be sitting. The elderly air travel often requires that the person has some specialized stockings to help with the circulation in their legs if they have problems with blood clotting. It is also helpful in elderly air travel to have the senior take opportunities to wiggle their toes and move around as often as possible to keep the circulation going.
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