4. ADDRESS MEDICAL, BEHAVIORAL, AND EMOTIONAL CONCERNS
If your child has any medical, behavioral, or emotional concerns, you should talk with the camp director and a representative of the medical staff. You can do this in person, during registration, or by phone a few days before opening day. Both the camp director and the camp nurse or doctor should know
about any medical conditions (asthma, allergies, recent injuries and illnesses, physical disabilities, etc.) and emotional or behavioral concerns (ADHD, eating disorders, bedwetting, sleepwalking, Tourette’s syndrome, recent stressful family events, etc.) that your child has. Remember, the camp staff is there to help.
Together, you and the camp director and the medical staff can decide how the whole camp staff can best meet your child’s needs. Perhaps you’ll decide that not every staff person in camp needs to know your child’s special concerns. However, sharing these issues with at least the camp director and the medical staff allows them to help, if need be. At the very least, medical staff need to know about any medications your child is currently on, or recently stopped taking. Find out who will administer the medication and how they will ensure compliance. Be sure to send any prescription medications in their original bottles with dosage instructions.
Some parents and children hesitate to share information about medical, emotional, or behavioral concerns. They may feel that the information is too personal, or they worry about confidentiality. If you want certain information to be confidential, simply tell the camp director. It’s the director’s ethical obligation to honor your request if it’s in the best interest of your child. Other families hesitate to share information because they think the problem won’t exist if no one knows about it. Often, this is a false hope. Staff usually notice that something is amiss, but they can’t tell exactly what. They spend the entire session trying to define and assist with a problem that took time and money for parents and trained professionals to explain or diagnose. Had staff been informed about the problem or concern, they could have helped out right away. The decision about whether to share information is up to you, of course. However, it is hardly ever beneficial to leave the camp in the dark about significant issues.
Finally, if you have packed over-the-counter medications in your child’s trunk, check that the camp allows this. As we mentioned earlier, seemingly “harmless” medications, such as aspirin, can be dangerous in large doses. Sugar-based preparations, such as cough drops, attract ants and other animals, and may be mistaken for candy by other kids. Camps prohibit children from keeping most medications in their cabin.
If your child has no medical, behavioral, or emotional issues, you might still want to say hello to the health center staff. They are the people who will care for your son or daughter in the unlikely event of an emergency.
If your child has any medical, behavioral, or emotional concerns, you should talk with the camp director and a representative of the medical staff. You can do this in person, during registration, or by phone a few days before opening day. Both the camp director and the camp nurse or doctor should know
Together, you and the camp director and the medical staff can decide how the whole camp staff can best meet your child’s needs. Perhaps you’ll decide that not every staff person in camp needs to know your child’s special concerns. However, sharing these issues with at least the camp director and the medical staff allows them to help, if need be. At the very least, medical staff need to know about any medications your child is currently on, or recently stopped taking. Find out who will administer the medication and how they will ensure compliance. Be sure to send any prescription medications in their original bottles with dosage instructions.
Some parents and children hesitate to share information about medical, emotional, or behavioral concerns. They may feel that the information is too personal, or they worry about confidentiality. If you want certain information to be confidential, simply tell the camp director. It’s the director’s ethical obligation to honor your request if it’s in the best interest of your child. Other families hesitate to share information because they think the problem won’t exist if no one knows about it. Often, this is a false hope. Staff usually notice that something is amiss, but they can’t tell exactly what. They spend the entire session trying to define and assist with a problem that took time and money for parents and trained professionals to explain or diagnose. Had staff been informed about the problem or concern, they could have helped out right away. The decision about whether to share information is up to you, of course. However, it is hardly ever beneficial to leave the camp in the dark about significant issues.
Finally, if you have packed over-the-counter medications in your child’s trunk, check that the camp allows this. As we mentioned earlier, seemingly “harmless” medications, such as aspirin, can be dangerous in large doses. Sugar-based preparations, such as cough drops, attract ants and other animals, and may be mistaken for candy by other kids. Camps prohibit children from keeping most medications in their cabin.
If your child has no medical, behavioral, or emotional issues, you might still want to say hello to the health center staff. They are the people who will care for your son or daughter in the unlikely event of an emergency.
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