Clinical Skills to Review

[frank27]

Hi!

Like many on here, I will be a first time camp nurse this summer at two different camps, each for one week. I was wondering what clinical skills you all recommend I review?

One camp will be with youth with special needs (so I won't be the only nurse there) and the other with a generally healthy group with less than 100 campers (I'll be the only RN with an EMT trained assistant). I am not an new nurse, however I am inexperienced in pediatrics. I do have several years experience with adults in neurology (strokes, head trauma, spinal injuries, etc) and experience in progressive step down care (heart attacks, ventilator dependent, diabetes, etc.). I'm hoping my neuro experience will be helpful (as I find many nurses are uncomfortable with neuro exams) but I am also earnestly hoping that my neuro experience will not be needed (crossing my fingers no head injuries) =] I have a public health nurse certification and did my hours as a school nurse (nothing too major, just health screens, lice checks, assisted in ensuring correct carb counting and administering the correct dosage of insulin and programming an insulin pump).

What do you think I should review as far as clinical skills and what are some common and uncommon situations/illnesses/issues that you have faced? Do you think any of my past experience will be helpful in transitioning into this new role?

I'm working my way through "The Basics of Camp Nursing" by Erceg and Pravada, and expecting "Camp Nursing - Circles of Care" by Casey in the mail as recommended in other posts. A large part of this post is also to make me feel like I'm ready for this new challenge, so hopefully I am! =]

Thanks!!!

[BonnieSc]

Your experience will have given you critical thinking skills, and that's what's most important. I haven't worked at a special needs camp, but nothing major is likely to happen at the regular camp. Headaches and nausea and mosquito bites, cuts and scrapes, homesickness. General assessment skills. You'll still get kids with chronic illnesses and conditions. Be ready to research unusual-to-you medications. You'll get to look at a lot of rashes. You'll take out slivers (probably the hands-on clinical skill I use the most!). A LOT of it is assessment and guesswork about what the kids' problems really are (not always what they present with). And I spend tons of time caring for and counseling the staff, including regarding birth control and abortion. These are mostly young adults who are away from home for the first time, so it comes up.

The Basics of Camp Nursing will prepare you very well.

[bsyrn, ASN, RN]

You might want to research cathing kids with spina bifida, their anatomy can be quite different then what you are use to. Treatments for kids with CF, administering growth hormones, dealing with kids with autism, restrictions for kids with shunts. We have had all of these at my camp :)

[jdub6]

I realize this is old but another thing I would recommend with the special needs week is to find out as much as you can about the campers baseline. If they are prone to, say, coughing spells but need to treatment, if their catheter has a large balloon or leaks when they do xyz. If they have "loose" joints that dislocate during normal activity and whether they can get it back in themselves or with simple help from an adult or it needs medical tx. If they run fevers frequently due to a metabolic illness, that do not indicate infection by themselves and again just need to be monitoring rather than an md visit. If a certain med clogs their gtube easily abs must be given a certain way. If they have a heart condition and their normal o2 Sat is 70-85.

Those are just some examples of things you might hear. The parents know exactly what works and all the quirks the pt has so try to get as much as you can (is there anything I should know when caring for sally? What do you make sure to tell your new home nurses? Etc.)

You will be expected to function very independently. Most camps have no provider presence and while you can always call patent or dr you have to be able to think things through and make decisions.

Also I found that many of my camp clinic visits were "tummy ache/don't feel good" that actually meant I MISS MOM AND WANT TO GO HOME! Particularly the first night or two. You may want to look for resources on how to effectively comfort and calm these kids...the vast majority do fine with some tlc mixed with a little tough love and up happy as pigs in mud.