My Long Haul Flights with Etanercept

Winter 2009: Lynette Fisher, NRAS Member

In December 2008 I flew to Australia to be with my mother who was to have a bypass operation. I had travelled to Australia many times before but this was the first time that I would have to take etanercept sharps as well as my other prescription drugs.

I calculated exactly the correct number of sharps I would need so that I would not have to bring any back. The Enbrel Homecare Service operated by Healthcare at Home gave me a travel sharps disposal box for my trip.

I travelled with Qantas and went through a travel agent to ensure that the flight met my requirements of full assistance (I have had 4 joint replacements in my right hand and had 2 other operations on my left hand), gluten-free meals, a requested seat (my right hip is painful) and permission to take my sharps on board.  Airline security does not allow sharp instruments on board flights without permission.

I rang Healthcare at Home who sent me a letter to state that my sharps must be with me at all times and kept in refrigerated conditions (between 2 – 8oC). I bought a small car fridge from Halfords, but any type of cold food container would do. I used freezer cold packs to keep everything cool until I could get ice from the plane’s kitchen.

I arrived at the Qantas service desk in Heathrow’s Terminal 4 with my customs letter ready. Although everything had been cleared by the travel agent, I still had to go through airline staff consulting on the issue again to clear the sharps. This was done and I was directed to check-in.

Again at check in, I showed my customs clearance letter and explained that I had permission to travel with my sharps on the plane and that I had also just spoken to the people on their service desk. The check-in person reconfirmed this with the service desk and then phoned Qantas management to again clear the sharps to be on-board. Once check-in staff realised that my fridge only needed cold packs, the fridge was cleared as an ‘extra’ item.

I had estimated how long the freezer packs would keep the fridge cold and thought that I would need my first lot of ice after four hours. I had waterproof plastic bags to put the ice in. The cabin staff were very obliging and a stewardess suggested dry ice would be better than ice as it would avoid the problem of water leaking and the need for plastic bags.

Three weeks later, after my mother’s operation, I returned home. Several months later I made my second trip to Australia with etanercept, this time for my parents’ sixtieth wedding anniversary.

For this trip I booked my flight following the same procedures as before. I was travelling with Qantas again and my travel agent referred to my previous flight with them. This cross-referencing made my requests much easier. On this journey the only problem I had was that at the airport I was told that I could only take 8 sharps on board. I was going for 6 weeks which meant that I needed 12 sharps. Once I explained that I needed more than 8, and produced my customs clearance letter, I was allowed to take them all on board. The flight went well, the service and assisted help was excellent.

My mother and father were able to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary with most of their children, grand-children and great-grand children.

Being able to do a long-haul flight knowing that everything will be fine and that my drugs would be safe to take afterwards does alleviate some of the stress of travelling.

I might add that I have not had any problems keeping my drugs cool when staying in hotels. I have asked when booking in and staff seemed happy to keep my Enbrel in their kitchen fridge if there was no fridge in the room.

For those travelling on a long haul flight my advice would be:

Remember your customs clearance letter for your drugs.

If travelling into Australia you will need to fill in an entry card on the plane. Tick the first line declaring that you are carrying drugs (even though it also includes firearms etc!). Security will then ask if the are prescription drugs and you would answer ‘yes’. If you don’t tick it there could be problems if they search your luggage.

• Carry your NHS prescription form or a copy with you.

• Check your ‘Fridge’ and use dry ice if available.

• Take only what sharps are required for the trip.

• If you need a wheelchair, book it at the travel agent. Do not presume you will get one when you get to the airport.

• Ring up the airline yourself a week before the flight and make sure that all your special needs are dealt with.

Happy and safe travelling.

Note: NRAS suggests you check the best way to carry your drugs with your pharmacist before travelling.  Airlines may vary in their policies so you should check procedures with your chosen airline well in advance of travelling.