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10 tips on how to keep your expat kids healthy & happy overseas

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Here are Some Tips for Expatriate Parents on How to Keep Your Kids Happy and Healthy Overseas

Moving abroad is often a difficult transition for expatriates and their spouses, but often even more so for their children. You want to make sure that the transition to life abroad is as effortless as possible. One of the most important considerations for expat parents is how to keep their expat kids healthy and happy abroad. We have noted several steps that expatriates can take before and after they move overseas to make sure the little ones and even teen expatriates will maintain their emotional and physical health.

1. Adjusting to their new school abroad

While you are trying to welcome your new environment, don’t forget to help your children to choose a school. Picking the right school requires you to do adequate research before moving abroad. It can be vital to the health and happiness of your children. For most children, the transition to a new environment can require sufficient counseling to help them integrate.

2. Make sure they are vaccinated

Obtaining the necessary vaccinations is important if you are moving overseas, but especially for children. Talk to your doctor and make sure they are up to date on their vaccination schedule and also make sure that they are properly vaccinated for diseases that may exist in your new home country abroad. When it comes to vaccinations, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

3. Encourage them to pack their things

Another step you can take to help your children to stay positive is to include them in the packing process. Encourage them to pack their belongings, and choose what they want to take on the plane and what gets shipped. Of course, also make sure they don’t forget their favorite toy or blanket!

Portrait of happy mother and baby girl on street overlooking rooftops of rome on sunset

4. Be mindful of their mental health and adjustment abroad

Moving abroad is a big deal for adults, but even more so for your children. They are moving away from all what they are familiar with – home, friends, cousins etc… Don’t try to avoid their questions and anxieties. As soon as you know there’s going to be a relocation, include your kids in the conversation. Listen properly to their questions and concerns. They have to make new connections in a brand new culture. While they may be excited, it can be quite daunting. If you can see assistance both before and after you go and be very mindful of their mental well-being after you move abroad. Think about having them join a team or club while abroad. Also, maybe include your kids in the process of decorating their rooms. Let them choose their furniture, paint colour and bedsheets.

5. Keep copies of your kids’ medical records

One of the biggest challenges when relocating with children is looking for high-quality medical care. It is always suggested to bring your children’s medical records wherever you go, as well as vaccination updates, and allergy history

6. Research destination illness and health warnings

Many countries are providing diseases and health warnings on their travel websites. Expats should consult these sites before moving abroad. In most cases, children are more vulnerable to infectious diseases. Through adequate research, you should be able to identify the signs and symptoms of some common local diseases. It also helps to take preventive actions such as vaccinations and checkups for your kids before you move.

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7. Help your children to keep in touch with home country

Moving abroad will be a landmark event in your children’s lives. It is suggested that you help your children collect all of their friends’ contact information, put them in an address book. Another helpful step would be to create photo albums to preserve their memories from their home country. It will also be a good idea to host an unforgettable goodbye party to celebrate this life-changing decision.

8. Find local expat kids groups

There are local expats groups or communities resources online, through social media or employee networking. Bring your kids to these child-friendly activities. It has been proved that these similarly minded expat parents can help expat children to acclimatize to the new surroundings faster.

9. Learn the language together with your children

It is a good idea to begin a language course before relocation. However, to better help your kids’ transition, you are recommended to take the time to learn the new language with your kids. It will help them to see there is a learning curve for everyone. And if you are enjoying the new language, they will be more likely to also.

An elementary age girl is holding her stuffed animal at the doctors office. Her mother is talking to the doctor in the background.

10. Obtain international health insurance to cover you and your expat kids

It is crucial for every expat family to take the necessary action to ensure that their spouse and children’s health and well-being are protected and provided for via an appropriate level of international health insurance. Expat Financial offers a wide array of excellent global health plans designed specifically for expatriates of most nationalities around much of the world. You should also consider purchasing the expatriate dental coverage option.

If you have questions about our international medical insurance plans or you want to discuss your needs and produce a customized evacuation quote, please contact us or complete the quote form.

The impact of global disease outbreaks on expats and tips on prevention

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With people travelling from all over the world and relocating overseas, expatriates should take extra precautions when it comes to health and safety. In the last few years, public health experts were on high alert due to the rapid spread of diseases such as the Zika virus, Dengue fever, SARS, Ebola virus, plague and more. In this article, we will discuss several pandemic disease threats and tips for expatriates to protect themselves from those diseases while working and living overseas.

Should Expatriates Worry About Disease Outbreaks? 

It is difficult to give a definitive answer to an expatriate’s chances of getting a disease if relocating to a region that has reported a disease outbreak. However, if there are a lot of people that have already been infected, then expatriates should pay close attention if visiting a specific area or region. One should note that diseases can travel vast distances because of increased global travel and mobility – it just takes a plane ride of an infected person to bring an outbreak to a new location.

According to the Public Health Watch Report, cholera, yellow fever and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) are the potential health threat given the recent pandemic report in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. There have also been reports of plague disease in Madagascar, where over 20 lives have recently been lost.

Five Disease Outbreaks that Put Expats at Risk

Cholera is an infectious disease that causes severe diarrhea, dehydration, and even death if untreated. Cholera is caused by a bacterium called Vibrio Cholerae in contaminated food and water. It is a severe medical problem in many parts of the world. According to the latest report on Africa News, World Health Organization (WHO) has declared Cholera outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), claiming that 17,000 treated in DRC.

Yellow fever was declared an outbreak in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda between 2016 and 2017, according to WHO. The bite of infected mosquitoes transmitted it. The outbreak caused 962 confirmed cases across the three countries. Yellow fever is a disease with symptoms of fever, jaundice, muscle pain, vomiting, headache and nausea. Large outbreaks of yellow fever occur within heavily populated areas, with high mosquito density but lack of vaccination. Infected mosquitoes can transmit the virus from person to person.

Zika Virus has become a fairly widespread disease that has caused great concern for expatriates and locals alike. While Zika is not a new disease (it was earlier found in Africa in the 1950s) the disease that is spread by mosquitoes has spread to many regions around the world, including South America, Asia and even in the USA. In most cases those infected will not show any symptoms, but some can experience paralysis, or in pregnant women, it may cause birth defects in their children. There is no vaccine at this time along with no effective treatment.

Pneumonic Plague was recently declared as an outbreak in Madagascar. The Plague is a highly infectious disease caused by the Yersinia pestis bacteria and is often found in the fleas of small mammals.  People can be infected by the flea bites or direct contact with infected persons or inhalation.

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection ranges from no symptoms to severe respiratory disease and death. According to WHO, the outbreaks have occurred in several countries including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and the Republic of Korea. And no vaccine or specific treatment is currently available for MERS-CoV. It has been reported that MERS is caused by Coronaviruses, which is a large family of viruses that can cause Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The typical MERS symptoms include a cough, fever, and shortness of breath. The virus can pass from person to person through close contact.

Disease Outbreak Prevention Tips for Expatriates Living Abroad 

  • As a general precaution, expatriates visiting markets, farms, jungles, or other rural regions with animals are present should practice high caution with hygiene, including hand washing before and after contacting animals, especially sick animals.
  • Avoid consuming raw or undercooked animal products or products in developing countries, including unpasteurized milk or vegetables.
  • Based on infected cases reported, some people are considered to be at high risk of disease infection. Consult your doctor about your medical history before relocating abroad.
  • For diseases that haven’t been determined response priorities by health authorities, expatriates should maintain a high level of vigilance.
  • Avoid crowded areas if there is a disease outbreak.
  • Avoid direct contact with animals and wildlife, especially in regions where outbreaks often occur.
  • Do some research on the potential health risks in your destination country’s travel advisory page and obtain required vaccinations before departure – there’s a wealth of information from the CDC and WHO.

To ensure you and your family are protected from costly medical bills outside the home country, it is strongly recommended to obtain international medical insurance. Most medical insurance plans will include coverage for sicknesses caused by most disease outbreaks. It will be important to make sure your global medical plan includes medical evacuation coverage and will cover you for treatment outside your country of residence.

Bring International Health Insurance with You

If you fear that you may have been exposed to an infection or virus no matter how many precautions you have taken, consult with a medical doctor as soon as possible; only your medical provider can provide definitive medical advice and treatment. Expat Financial offers several different international health insurance plans for expatriates. We also provide excellent service before and after you purchase your international health insurance plan. If you have questions about our international medical insurance plans or you want to discuss your needs and produce a customized quote, please contact us or complete the quote form.

 

What to consider when moving abroad with children

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Moving overseas can be very challenging. This is especially true when you are not living alone. With international health insurance at hand, adequately preparing your children of all ages before relocation is very important and it will assist your family with the best start to a new life abroad. The following tips provide information on how to deal with different age groups when moving overseas with children.

Kindergarten to Grade 6 

For most parents, if you are moving overseas with children under Grade 6 to a country where English is not the official language, don’t worry. Scientists have already proved that the age group between toddlers and Grade 6 can learn a new language fast with ease. Also, it is believed that this age group of children adopt new environment much more quickly. For children between age 9 and 12, however, make sure that you provide with them more details about the move overseas. They may already have many friends at school. Living abroad may seem taking away from everything they love in their home country. Spending more time with your children and encouraging them to keep in touch with their friends either through the social media sites and over the phone. Involving them when discussing life overseas, as well as enrolling them in some clubs with activities that they showed interest in.

Expat Teenagers 

Teenagers are likely to think of themselves as young adults. Moving overseas with teenagers can be more challenging if you didn’t have a good chat with them. Most expat families want teenagers to help with preparing and organizing when living abroad. At this age, although they are not sure about leaving, plus they already have a strong tie with friends and social networking, children in this age group will generally have the maturity to recognize that they will have many more opportunities abroad. However, relocating to a new country can be found more difficult for this age group due to the language barrier at the beginning, culture shock and extending social networking. As expat parents, you should continually focus on the positive aspect of the whole process and be patient about their doubts, questions and even give up. Talk to them about their expectations, try to work together to solve the challenges they are facing as a whole family, and consult educational opportunities available that they will be able to take part in. It is a great adventure for children of this age.

Schools for Expat Kids

One of the most daunting aspects of moving abroad with children is finding adequate schooling for your children young and old. Amongst all choices available, local schools and international schools are the two most popular options for many expat parents. The majority of local schools are teaching in their local language. For children coming from English language environment, this could be challenging at the very beginning. But if expat families are planning to stay permanently overseas, it is always better to encourage children to grasp the local language by attending local schools, especially of primary school age.  The international schools, however, usually teaching in English language or has English as their second language. It is more costly than local schools, but expats may find it easier for their children to settle in. Some international schools provide world-recognized education curricula, such as Montessori methodology, IB program(International Baccalaureate) and AP (Advanced Placement). It will help if expat children want to continue their home country education when living abroad.

Don’t forget Global Medical Cover for your Kids

International health insurance coverage is a necessity and should be your top considerations except for children. Expat Financial offers a wide range of expatriate health insurance plans designed specifically for any expatriates of any nationality around much of the world. Our expat health insurance plans can also cover local nationals where conditions permit. It is crucial for every expat family to take the necessary action to ensure that their spouse and children’s health and well-being are protected and provided for via an appropriate level of expat insurance.

If you have questions about our international medical insurance plans or if you want to discuss your needs and produce a customized evacuation quote, please contact us or complete the quote form.