How to Start a Travel Clinic in Your Pharmacy

Travel health is the single most profitable PGD service category for UK community pharmacies. Here's how to set one up properly.

Step one is securing your PGDs. You need a PGD provider that covers the full range of travel vaccines — typhoid, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, diphtheria/polio/tetanus, cholera, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, meningitis ACWY, and dengue. You also need anti-malarial PGDs for Malarone, Doxycycline, and Mefloquine, plus supporting PGDs for altitude sickness and traveller's diarrhoea standby packs.

Step two is training. Every pharmacist delivering the service must complete accredited training for each PGD. This covers the clinical pathway, inclusion and exclusion criteria, vaccine schedules, cold chain management, anaphylaxis response, and documentation requirements. Good providers include this training as part of the package.

Step three is your consultation setup. You need a private consultation room with a clinical waste bin, sharps disposal, anaphylaxis kit (with in-date adrenaline auto-injectors), a fridge with temperature monitoring for vaccine storage, and a digital system for recording consultations.

Step four is stock. Travel vaccines represent a significant upfront investment. Start with the highest-demand lines — Hepatitis A, Typhoid, and DTP are your bread and butter. Add specialist vaccines as demand grows. Work with your wholesaler on returns policies for short-dated stock.

Step five is marketing. Most travel patients find their pharmacy through Google. Make sure your Google Business profile lists travel vaccination services. Put signage in-store. Post on local social media groups when travel season approaches (January–March is peak booking season for summer travel).

Step six is pricing. Travel consultations should be priced to reflect the clinical expertise involved. A full pre-travel consultation with multiple vaccines typically ranges from £150–300. Don't undercut yourself — patients are comparing you to GP travel clinics charging similar rates, not to free NHS services.

The biggest mistake new travel clinics make is launching with too few vaccines. If a patient needs four vaccines and you only stock two, they'll go elsewhere for all four. Complete your portfolio from day one.

Revenue expectations: a well-marketed travel clinic in a reasonably busy location should generate £30,000–50,000 in its first year, growing to £46,000+ as repeat patients and word-of-mouth build.