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Last week we have a very weird experience at our place. A taxi driver who is a friend of us brought a german tourist to our place. She was a backpacker. She paid 25 US$ at the last place she stayed but now she was looking for something cheaper because she was running out of money. She asked if we can give a room for 6 US$ (yes, six). We accepted her for 10 US$ which is under the minimal price we charge. Our minimal is 15 US$. She was a nice person. We invited her with some fruits and mango juice and we had a nice chat. I didnt realize that there was something strange with her, but my partner realized it. She is epileptic. From time to time she got some āshocksā. So far so good. we asked her what should we do if she has any problem, because although our village has an hospital it is a pretty small place. Next day we invited her (for free) to come with us to visit a place where tobacco will be processed. We arrange to meet at 9:00 AM. She didnt appear. We waited until 10:00 and she didnt appear. The told us that normally she used to sleep long therefore we didnt awake her.
We went out but some people remain at our place. Seems to be that she appeared for breakfast at 12:00. A neighbor who does not speak neither german nor english brought her on foot to the tobacco place . She does not speaks any single word of spanish. During the walk she got a severe epileptic attack. Our neighbor could āsomehowā manage the situation. When I came back the situation was somehow chaotic. We were lucky because we have a physician pretty near and this tourist was carrying her own medication.
The question isā¦ Should we ask for a health certificate to our passengers?
In 3 years we have experienced many weird stuff but this is our top story.
Interesting! I am not sure I have an answer, but I am really curious to see what advice others have. This guest was NOT booked through Airbnb, correct? Just directly with you? I would guess a waiver of responsibility would be the way to go. Americans donāt have āhealth certificatesā ā¦ are those a thing?
No it would not be any different if the guest had booked via Airbnb. What do you need a health certificate for? Epilepsy is relatively common and to be honest most people should know how to deal with it as itās simple first aid.
Ensure that the persons head isnāt near anything that could hurt them and loosen clothing. Roll them onto their side after their seizure has stopped. Donāt put anything in their mouth to stop them biting their tongue as this could cause more damage than intended.
People with epilepsy do not need to go to hospital every time they have a seizure - generally they are able to get on with their day. You do need to call an ambulance if the seizure lasts longer than five minutes or if they donāt gain consciousness.
Do you mean a medical clearance or a doctorās certificate of a clean bill of health? I am not sure how guests would feel if you asked for/required a health certificate. Putting myself in the guestās shoes, I would find it weird that my host was asking for this. Also be careful, as some nationalities/cultures may be offended. That said, asking for a certificate might not be a good idea.
I do think you handled it well by asking this guest in advance what you as hosts should do should she get an attack. That is the most you can do without crossing the line of asking too many questions about a guestās health issues. I understand your concern though as witnessing a severe epileptic attack the first time can leave you worried for your guestās safety.
I donāt think anything like a āhealth certificateā exists in the USA! The only health certificate I have ever seen is for a kitchen; a far less complex ecosystem.
I would never stay anywhere that asked me this question. At least in my part of New England, health is considered a fairly personal topic. I would not answer a question about my income level. I am sure that there are other questions that I wouldnāt answer before even meeting a person.
There was a similar thread recently with a story about a diabetic. I donāt think you can or should ask in advance about health conditions. People have a right to privacy and to be free of discrimination.
Iām seemingly in the minority in thinking that people with serious conditions traveling alone should talk to their hosts about these conditions. I feel that it is unfair to others and dangerous to me to assume that others will know what kind of help I need.
But as a host, you shouldnāt initiate such conversations.
She needs to go home and be reviewed if her medication is causing break through seizures, then maybe her epilepsy is never fully under control. I have a child who has diagnosed at 2 with epilepsy, adjustments need to be made with meds and stressful situations can cause problems, running out of money in another country could definitely trigger stress.
I take language students during the summer months, some students arrive with health problems that they donāt inform the college about and if hosts are not prepared or familiar they get them removed. As long as I know what the health problem is, what I would need to do if a problem arouse, I donāt mind any student. But I suppose guests donāt need to inform you,but I would rather know if someone has a medical problem only so I can make sure I know what to do if they need help
I think if you are travelling alone, you have a duty of care to yourself first to make sure you are healthy and if not seek medical assistance
Apologies but the situation with a student on a language experience and a guest booking an Airbnb are two completely different situations, not least because the school/college/family host have a duty of care towards the student that does not exist between a host and guest.
I know that, the point is that people often donāt disclose their medical issues even when in the case of a student they should, sometimes out of fear they wonāt be hosted.
As someone who used to organise these things myself; it was, in the case of students, frequently laziness and forgetfulness that made them not fill in forms correctly. Which was why we would then chase with the parents (also pretty bad at completing paperwork but for a different reason.) Iāve lost count of the students who disclosed nut allergies but were found about to tuck into carrot cake. And equally those who informed me of x reason they couldnāt do /eat something on the day. Sigh. And ulmitately I am responsible to their parents if something goes wrong.
The reason a guest wouldnāt share information with a host is privacy. Itās simply none of the hosts business and there is no duty of care in any case.
I guess we will have to disagree. I donāt have to inform a hotel when I stay with them; I donāt need to inform the bus driver before I get on the bus; I donāt need to warn people as I cross the road. In all those situations something might happen causing me to have an epsisode. It still does not mean I will go around warning everyone about my private business so they can discriminate against me.
I recently stayed with a friend who had an epileptic fit during my stay with him. It was me and him alone and the episode came out of nowhere. I was actually in a different room and came in and found him in the middle of a fit, banging his head against the wall.
At no point did I think I should have been warned, even though I ended up having to step in and help out. I understand and continue to understand his need for privacy.
@Zandra this is one of the most sensible posts Iāve ever seen. It seems that everyone on the planet has the capacity to have a seizure at any time - they do not have to be āepilepticā. A seizure can be symptomatic of various conditions or can just be caused by external factors (such as strobe lights) in ānon-epilepticā people.
Itās true that anyone who has a seizure does not need to be hospitalised. The person might feel more embarrassed than anything else - which they have no need to because, as you say, itās very common.
I know, we had the same convo on the diabetic thread. To be clear, I donāt think you should have to inform anyone, especially not before your reservation starts.
As a host, if I hear someone banging around in the guest room, Iād like to know how to respond. Are they injured or ill? Are they upset? Do I knock on their door? If they donāt respond do I just ignore it unless they donāt check out the next morning? A legal duty of care is not the same as the obligation of care I feel for my fellow humans.
And these arenāt hypotheticals. My sister was diabetic and would have died more than once if someone hadnāt known and intervened. Another young friend died of an asthma related episode and lack of timely intervention was part of the cause. But I think people should be allowed to do what they want with their own bodies. But if someone died at my home and I found out I could have prevented it had I known what action to take, Iād be heartbroken. I donāt think I could continue to host.
If you feel that way you could take first aid training like I have. They train you how to deal with most situations should anything happenā¦
Like Iāve noted before ā¦ Iām asthmatic, I take medication daily and have to regularly meet the nurse to review my asthma. Iāve never disclosed my illness to hosts except in one situation where the host smoking was triggering my asthma and causing me severe discomfort.
But I am certain were I to start telling hosts my asthma is something I actively manage on a daily basis people would start to find reasons they couldnāt honour my booking.
Iām just wondering how this would fit in with Airbnbās anti-discrimination policy? Are we able to discriminate against people who have health conditions? I would doubt it.
No we canāt but who want to put up with booking a place and then dealing with the problem. I have no doubt that people would discriminate. I completely understand Zandraās position.
This thread, and the diabetes thread have me thinking that I should have a sheet in the room with the nearest, and best hospitals. If you are going to be ill, Boston is the place to do it after all. I am thinking about a list of urgent care stand-alone clinics, and the major hospitals, with phone numbers and addresses. I mean, where to find a large breakfast is good, but medical is a close second.
