Dr Joanne Liu from the Clinique Santé-voyage appearing on the program Les docteurs

Les animateurs de l'émission Les docteurs, dans l'ordre, les D^rs Alain Vadeboncoeur, Gaëlle Vekemans, Chantal Guimont et Jacques Toueg.

Montreal, December 14, 2011 – D^r Joanne Liu, a medical expert in travel health from the Clinique of the Fondation du CHUM and emergency paediatrician at Sainte Justine Hospital, made an appearance on les docteurs, a program broadcast on Radio Canada, to discuss intestinal parasites.

Contacted because of her expertise, D^r Joanne Liu pointed out the precise manner in which intestinal parasites are acquired. In addition, she described the symptoms connected with this kind of parasite as well as the ways to avoid them and to get rid of them.

“Diarrhea is one reason people often come in for a consultations after traveling. When it becomes severe, bacteria or sometimes intestinal parasites are the cause. In any event, it is important to identify the source of the diarrhea,” she declared.

Far from being confined to the intestines, certain parasites surreptitiously take up residence elsewhere in the body, in places such as the liver, the skin or the muscles. “Some parasites, like amoeba, can develop into a serious illness, causing, for example, abscesses to the liver,” noted D^r Liu, reminding people of the necessity to see a doctor after traveling if a health problem occurs.

On staff for a few years now at the Clinique Santé-voyage, D^r Liu has over 15 years experience working with Doctors without Borders (MSF). She has served, as well, some twenty years on missions in conflict zones, disaster or crisis locations in the world, among them, Haiti, Darfur, Palestine and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Her community involvement was honoured earlier this autumn by the WYCA which bestowed on her in September the 2011 Woman of Distinction Award. Alongside all her community service, D^r Liu works at Sainte Justine Hospital in paediatrics and is still a member of Doctors without Borders.

You can watch D^r Joanne Liu on Les docteurs on February 7, 2012 at 4 p.m.

For further information about travel-health vaccination, go to the Website santevoyage.com of the Clinique Santé-voyage of the Fondation du CHUM.

The picture used to illustrate this article comes from Radio Canada’s site Les docteurs: http://www.radio-canada.ca/emissions/les_docteurs/2011-2012/