For a parent with a young adult child traveling overseas, stress can sometimes outweigh the pleasure of knowing that your child is experiencing wonderfully different cultures firsthand. 

Through a year-long fellowship, a young woman was traveling independently to South Africa, India, Northern Ireland, Chile, Germany and Greece. Her mother, Laura Stanley Duffy, insisted on a Global Rescue medical and security membership for her.

“With Global Rescue, I felt like I was buying peace of mind,” said Duffy.

The joys of travel were instilled in her two daughters from an early age. “We live in a small house so it was easier to give travel than stuff.  But it made my daughters unafraid to travel anywhere, which can be stressful for me.”

Her first daughter was enrolled in the Traveling School, a non-profit organization which takes high school girls overseas for a semester. Through the school, she was covered with a Global Rescue membership for her travels to Namibia, South Africa and Botswana.

Duffy’s second daughter, traveling independently for one year, was healthy until she reached India. After three months there, she contracted dysentery and could not shake it. She lost nearly 15 pounds in three weeks.

“She was alone and far from home,” said Duffy. “As a mom, you’re truly relying on your child’s judgment. A child often assumes you’re overreacting. But people get into trouble when they’re dehydrated.”

Global Rescue was contacted for advice on hospitals in India. The company, which conducts extensive research on and has relationships with medical centers of excellence around the world, confirmed that the young woman was going to the right place for care.

“It was calming to me to hear another professional who knew the landscape and could say my daughter was in good hands,” noted Duffy.

After two hospital visits and two rounds of medicine, the young woman was on the mend by the time she was ready to leave India.

“I got paid back all year long,” said Duffy. “If your kids are traveling, you need to know about Global Rescue.”