Medical safety
Having a healthy and safe week at camp starts at home! Woodlands wants to partner with you to ensure your camper has an unforgettable time at camp spiritually and physically!
Before Camp
Please send your camper well rested and healthy to ensure a great week of camp.
Please update you camper’s health form and emergency contacts prior to arrival at camp.
If your camper shows signs of illness before camp, please keep them at home and notify our office at 706-865-0853 or office@woodlandscamp.org. Before your camper can check-in to camp, they must be fever-free without taking any fever-reducing medication, Tylenol and Ibuprofen, for 24 hours.
Please pack a reusable water bottle with your camper and encourage them to bring it with them for hydration throughout the day at camp.
During Camp
If your camper gets a scrape, bruise, or needs minor care while at camp, you will not receive a phone call from the nurse. If you camper gets injured, has to stay in the clinic for extended time, needs to be seen by a doctor, or has an emergency, your camper’s emergency contact will be notified as quickly as possible by a member of our health team.
If your camper has a low grade fever (99.1-100.3 degrees F), they will be kept in the clinic for further evaluation, treatment, reassessment, and rest. We will rejoin them to their cabin if/when their temperature returns to normal and feeling better to do so. If your camper has a sustained fever (>100.4 degrees F) upon multiple assessments after resting in the clinic, their emergency contact will be informed and arrangements will be made to the camper to be picked up.
While at home, if your camper is fever-free without taking any fever-reducing medications, like Tylenol and Ibuprofen, for 24 hours, they may return to camp.
If your camper has persistent symptoms that impact your camper’s ability to participate in camp activities (persistent diarrhea, vomiting, ankle or knee injury, psychological episodes, syncope or “passing out”), the camp nurse will contact the emergency contact and may discuss if the camper can continue at camp given persistent symptoms after the treatments available at camp.
If you will be out of town or unreachable while your camper is at camp, please make sure to add an alternative emergency contact to your camper’s health form on their camper profile through the parent portal.
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Woodlands has an amazing team of registered nurses and health assistants (nursing students) on site for every week of camp, as well as a physician on-call. Our on-call physician acts as the medical director of camp, providing yearly review of our policies and treatment protocols. Our nurses and health team are expertly trained in the unique aspects of camp nursing.
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Click here to go to our medication info page!
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Hydration is key to an unforgettable week! Don’t forget to pack a reusable water bottle for your camper! Educate your camper to carry their water bottle with them around camp, and to refill it frequently with water throughout the day. Often, dehydration presents itself as a headache or stomachache.
Camp Medical Policies - Traditional & Xtreme Camp
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Parents/Guardians: please email our Healthcare Manager, Julie (julie@woodlandscamp.org), to confirm your camper meets our diabetic criteria as listed below.
Note for XTREME Camp: Due to the remote aspect of the Xtreme campsites, off site excursions and limited electricity for charging monitoring devices, it is recommended that diabetic campers do NOT register for Xtreme camp at this time.
Traditional Campers with Type 1 Diabetes…
*Must be entering the 6th grade to attend.*
*Must be diagnosed for at least one year or more prior to camp.
*Must be on a monitoring system (ex. Dexcom or other CGM device)
*Must submit documentation of an A1C of 7.4% or less within 90 days of your camper’s week of camp. This should be emailed to julie@woodlandscamp.org at least 2 weeks prior to camp along with their diabetic plan of care.
*Must know their high and low symptoms and be willing to tell someone if they are feeling symptomatic.
*Must not need any regular middle of the night care (blood sugar checks, insulin doses).
*Must check or report their BS at mealtimes and before bed and report to the health team (with additional checks, if necessary).
*Campers with Type 1 diabetes need to be self-sufficient in calculating carbs, giving insulin and managing the overall care of their diabetes.
Camp is definitely a more active environment than school, so please keep that in mind when…
Discussing camp with your camper’s doctor (often, a basal and ratio adjustment is needed to keep-up with the high activity level of camp).
Adjusting your camper’s Continuous Glucose Monitor’s (CGM) settings for camp.
Sending instructions for correction doses, carb ratios, etc. for their week of camp.
Required supplies to pack for camp:
Extra glucometer
Glucagon
Snacks
Extra supplies (insulin, CGM/pump supplies). There is a refrigerator available in the clinic for any items needing refrigeration.
Please email julie@woodlandscamp.org with questions or further instruction.
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Physical and/or Mental Limitations-
It is our desire that every child have an opportunity to attend Woodlands. However, some physical and/or mental limitations may prevent a child from having a safe and enjoyable week at camp. In regard to physical and/or mental limitations or delays, we ask that each child have the ability to:
- perform all activities of daily living (dressing, eating, ambulating, toileting and hygiene) with 100% independence.
- understand and follow rules and instructions independently. Campers participate in group activities and 1 on 1 supervision is not available. Many activities at camp have an inherent risk associated with them (zip line, swimming, etc.) and require an understanding of procedure and potential dangers before participating. Your child will be expected to have the ability to independently follow these instructions for their safety.
- use appropriate verbal communication. Each camper should have the ability to express their desires, needs and concerns using their words.
- Tolerate loud noises, loud music and large groups.
If it is determined that your camper does not meet these criteria and is unsafe for camp after their arrival at camp, they will not be allowed to participate in camp activities and will need to be picked up- forfeiting their fees.
If your child needs assistance in any of these areas and you are unsure whether your child can safely attend camp- please reach out to our nurse at Julie@woodlandscamp.org .
Camp Medical Policies - Freestyle Camp
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Freestyle campers should leave medications at home. Woodlands’ staff does not distribute any medications to Freestyle campers.
Woodlands does not provide medical staff or medical care at Freestyle Synergy sites. We encourage each Freestyle Synergy site to provide their own nurse or medical staff for the week to oversee any specific medical needs of the campers.
In the event of an emergency, emergency services will be notified immediately.
Thank you for partnering with us to ensure a healthy and safe week for your camper and all campers at Woodlands!
For any health, safety, or medical questions, please contact our Healthcare Manager, Maddie, at mmatthews@woodlandscamp.org.