Five Steps to Ensure Your Child's Health & Safety at Camp

Today starts the beginning of camp for many kids in the Hudson Valley. While camp is sure to provide a summer's worth of fun, it's important to remember that sometimes children can get sick or injured. Regardless of whether you've chosen a day or sleep away camp, it's important to make sure the facilities can provide quick and appropriate medical care. Here are five areas for you to check into:

1. Common injuries and illnesses
Be aware of the more common problems that can occur at camp so that if they occur, you are reassured that it is not a huge problem. Some of the usual injuries and illnesses include bee stings, poison ivy, coughs, ear infections, sunburn, headaches, bruises, broken bones and sprains. More serious emergencies, though rare, can include snakebites and severe allegic reactions to insect bites.

2. Basic equipment, staff and procedures
All camps should have basic first aid equipment required by the Red Cross and the Board of Health. Most day camps provide an on-site nurse and other personnel trained in CPR and first aid. Camps will handle scrapes and bruises, but depending on the severity of the situation, the staff will call the parent or the pediatrician or go to the emergency room.

At sleep away camps, there should be round-the-clock medical personnel, a full supply of prescription medications, and lifesaving medical equipment such as an oxygen machine. Check the guidelines to the camp before you leave your child, but be aware that sleep away camps may not call you if your child is ill, unless it appears to be more than just a run-of-the-mill complaint.

3. Parental notification
If x-rays are needed, the camp will notify the parents after they have been taken, regardless of the outcome (ask the camp if their procedures are different). Although many parents want to be notified about anything that happens, it is impossible to do this for camps with hundreds of kids. Instead, make sure the camp knows at what point you'd like to be called if your child is ill or injured.

There are also state requirements for medical examinations and a completion of a medical history form for all campers.

4. Medications
Provide a listing of immunizations and the names of medications that your child is taking. Advise the camp if you'd taken your child off any medications before attending camp. Don't make any major changes to medication right before camp if you can prevent it. If your child is taking daily meds, the camp will collect, store and administer the medicines at its health facility. Under some state laws, campers aren't allowed to keep medication on them, including ibuprofen.
If your child suffers from headaches or allergies pack it and have the health facility store it in their facility. The child can ask for it when she needs it.

5. Special needs
If your child has a special need, make sure you examine the camp and that they have all of your child's pertinent medical information.