androrn

Last summer I used a coupon from a discount pharmacy site. Unfortunately I'm not sure which one they used. My pharmacy worked with me on the cost and was willing to price check several to find the best deal. You can search the web and several come up. It helps if you have a good relationship with your local pharmacy. One other problem to keep in mind is that retail pharmacies can no longer fill prescriptions for institutions like a camp. We had to order under an individual's name because we needed so many. That being said, they still were not cheap, but we saved some money.

Hi, this is Janice. I am a full-time pediatric nurse--except for the summer when I get to be a camp nurse. Heading back to Camp Androscoggin in Maine for my 21st summer. We are an all-boys camp with about 275 boys for the summer. As of my last discussion with the director, we are still looking for nurses if you know anyone that is interested.

Wint, you are not far from me at all. Fayette has a place that some of the staff likes to visit at night. Which camp will you be at? As for injuries---think of all the things boys can get into. Being a mostly sports camp (but not all) we always manage to see some fractures during the summer. Luckily usually nothing that can't be handled w/ some splinting and a xray and doctor's visit. Also see lots of twisted ankles. Bug bites, colds, occasional stomach aches, etc. also adds to the work of the day. I don't get too excited about the creatures. Yes there are spiders and bugs and rodents. Most of our spiders just come back after we try to get rid of them. Of course I just consider that they eat the mosquitos, so there is a positive side to having them around. On another plus side is that Maine has no poisonous snakes---but they will bite if the kids decide to torture them, as boys are known to do. Ours have at times tried (and succeeded) in catching them. Hope you have a great summer. I am counting down the days until I am able to head up there. Only 4 more weeks to work until my time off for the summer begins.

Wint, which camp in Maine? I will be at Camp Androscoggin in Wayne, another all boys camp. Returning for my 20th summer so think of Maine as my second home. Hope you enjoy your summer

I wear shorts and a camp issued t-shirt at camp. I am also at an all-boys camp. Most wear shorts that are about mid-thigh length or so, therefore to your fingertips should be acceptable. It is all up to your director. I also wear capris and sweats depending on the weather which is very unpredictable in Maine. As for scrubs--I wear them all year and welcome the chance to be in street clothes it's camp, not a hospital. No problem being known as the nurse around there when there are so few female staff. Hope you enjoy your summer.

My camp pays at the end of the summer, although expenses for travel to camp are available earlier. We also can take money out against our check through the summer.

Alisabeth Hope you enjoy your time in Maine. Can't believe I will be there in 2 weeks, it has become my second home. I can't wait to see all my boys. You can contact me at Camp Androscoggin (your camp will have the number, just ask for Janice) if you have any questions or just need someone in the field to contact with. Sometimes it is nice to talk to others from the local camps. Our camps socialize together and my directors' daughter finished there last summer. Have a great summer.

It is a good resource especially for newer camp nurses, but even us returners can use a little advice. You may also want to check out the website for the Association of Camp Nurses www.acn.org if you are not already a member. They will have other resources available. I will be up to camp around the 13th of June---always love to go a little early to have time to get settled and relax. Camp Androscoggin in Wayne, ME is my home away from home in the summer. I've been there 17 years and still loving it. Cannot wait to see my boys. Happy camping and have a great summer.

I will be returning for my 17th summer at Camp Androscoggin in Maine. Actually will not be too far from where you will be, I think an hour or so. Our camps actually do socials together and brother/sister days. Hope you enjoy it. I love Maine and camp. Can't wait to get back this summer. Hope you have a great time.

Once all the bugs were worked out, things went well. Our camp uses Easy Camp software. They were able to give us a file drawer for medical so we could chart on each camper. Basically we set up a form with their basic health info so we didn't have to always pull their charts. As for notes, it was straight narrative charting (think SOAP note). The nice thing was that I could run a daily report to hand into my directors each morning. Much easier for them to read and follow. At the end of the summer, I ran individual reports for the campers and attached to their charts. Of course everything is also backed up to disc when the whole system is backed up. The down side is if it is busy, you end up charting after the work is done---but then again that happened at times with the log too, especially with more than one of us seeing campers during sick call. This summer we are expanding it to be able to chart the counselors visits also. We kept them on paper charting last year. We are up for ACA review this summer, so I guess we'll see if they have any complaints, but I don't see any reason as there is another camp management software out there that allows the same thing. Can't wait til June. Need some Maine fresh air. Happy camping!

You can get lined, bound, page-numbered log books from stores such as Staples. They aren't cheap but they fill the need. I think the ACA also sells something. We are going to try to computer chart this year. We are working with the camp software company to set something up. I hope it works so we can get away from double charting. We currently chart in the log book and then copy that info to each camper's medical record that we keep so that it is easier to track what is going on with each camper. A lot of unnecessary writing but the only way we could figure to do it. My director likes to see the details of each day, so only making a brief sign-in note in the log book didn't work. The way I understood the guidelines last year is that if you use a charting system, you don't necessarily have to keep the log book. If you think about it the charts are not really any different than what you have in most doctors' offices and those are legally binding also. Don't know if you are at a full summer camp or not, so don't know if this would work for shorter camps. Hope this helps. Happy camping.

Enjoy spending time with the kids at the camp activities when you can. Whenever I go to an activity that involves all or most of the camp, I take my "go bag" with me. I keep alot of things I might need so that I don't have to walk back to the infirmary. Things such as bandaids, epipen, tylenol, tums, benadryl, throat lozenges, gauze, cold pack, stethoscope, etc and a little notebook to write down anything I might do. Seems like I dip into this bag almost every time I go along with the camp. Makes things much easier. This is also the bag I grab when called to the field to see a camper so I don't have to think what to grab on the way. Love being a camp nurse, can't wait for summer to start. Happy camping!!

As of last week we were still looking for a RN for a boy's residential camp in Maine. I can get details to anyone interested.

In the past I have used egg trays that I got from our kitchen to hold the med cups. Just place them in the bottom of a plastic box with a lid with a handle and you have an easy way to transport meds. We currently have the boxes that you find in the craft dept that hold beads or threads, etc. The med cups can be sort of stacked in there for transport to the dining hall where we set them out. Happy camping.

For supplies I would add a stethoscope---never know when someone's asthma will flare up. Also if there are any sports involved, splints of some sort. I love SAM splints for larger areas (arms and legs) and tongue depressors come in handy for finger splints, at least temporarily. I'm working a boy's camp for the 15th year and cannot survive without things for sports injuries. Hope everyone has a great summer!!!

I can't believe it is time to head to camp. I'm leaving on Friday to head to the wonderful state of Maine. In the meantime, I have talked to one of our newer camp docs and she had some questions concerning documentation. Let me explain that I have been at this camp for most of 14 years and last summer was the first one I had to miss---and the doc's first year there. We are at a residential boys camp with about 250 boys. We currently document in a log book why the person came in and what was done (basically a full note) and then that info gets transcribed to each indivuals chart. Lots of writing and double charting. Our director likes it that way so we can make copies of the log book each morning for her to see. What I'm wondering about is if we can get by with documenting the basics in the log book and have a separate form for each visit to attach in the chart. I know the ACA standards and they have always seemed a bit vague on this point--other than to indicate that a log must be kept and the type it must be, not really what has to be included. Just trying to cut down on the time spent writing as well as a way to easily read each chart since our docs change every one to two weeks. Thanks for any info anyone has--and sorry this was a little lengthy. Hope everyone has a great summer. I can't wait to get to camp and see my boys again. Happy camping, Androrn

I know this may be a little early in the season, but was wondering about pre-packaged meds for camp. I work at an 8 week private boys camp in Maine. My director is now looking at Kidsmedpacks as a possibility to use next summer. The info on the web site looks good, but was wondering if anyone has any experience using this company. Anything that makes med handling easier is a plus for the summer. Thanks for any info.