Summer at KEY Health & Safety

The Health Office is a place where campers who become ill or suffer minor injuries at camp may briefly rest while a decision is made whether they should remain at camp or go home.

The Health Office is staffed by a camp nurse from 8:30 to 3:30 the first day of each week and 8:45 to 3:45 the balance of each week. The nurse is responsible for administering minor first aid to campers and contacting medical professionals and/or parents/guardians in case of serious illness or injury.

From time to time, the camp nurse must determine whether to send a camper home. In such cases the camper's health, as well as the risk to the other members of the camp community, is considered. When it is determined that a camper cannot remain in camp, the Nurse will contact the parent or guardian first. If they cannot be reached, the emergency contact will be called.

We require that each camper has someone that can be at camp within one hour to pick them up.  As a result, it is important to have pick-up plans with emergency contacts in place.

If your camper has asthma, severe food allergies, seizures, bee sting allergies, diabetes, or any other serious medical condition, the appropriate Action Plan form (see below) is required to be returned to the Health Office at least two weeks prior to the start date of their first camp. 

• School Medication Administration Authorization
• Asthma Action Plan
• Allergy and Anaphylaxis Emergency Plan
• Diabetes Action Plan
• Seizure Action Plan

The completed paperwork can be emailed to Nurse Katie Anderson at kanderson@keyschool.org, faxed to 443.926.9394, or mailed to: Summer at KEY, Attn. Nurse Katie, 534 Hillsmere Drive, Annapolis, MD 21403. If mailing, please allow for transit time. Campers will not be able to attend Camp until this information is received.

Families are encouraged to administer medication at home when possible. If any medication (prescribed or over-the-counter) must be taken at camp, a Maryland State School Medication Administration Authorization Form must be completed and signed by a medical professional and by a parent or guardian. It should be turned in to the Camp Nurse along with the medication.

The only exception will be for the non-prescription medications of acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), and diphenhydramine (Benadryl). The camp provides campers with these medications, when necessary, if permission is given on the campers Medical Form, which will be filled out as part of the registration process.

Any medication to be given at camp must be given to the Camp Nurse. The medication container should be labeled with the following: 

• Name of camper
• Name of medication
• Dosage of medication to be given
• Frequency of administration
• Route of administration
• Name of authorized prescriber ordering the medication
• Date of prescription
• Expiration date (Expired medications cannot be accepted or administered by the Health Office personnel or designate. This includes inhalers and Epipens.)

Campers in grades five through eight may carry and self-administer inhalers and Epipens, once the Camp Nurse has received the appropriate documentation. The camper’s health care provider must sign the designated space on the Maryland State School Medication Administration Authorization Form (see above).

All medications should be picked up on the camper’s last day of camp. If your camper is in After Care on the last day of a camp session, their medications should be picked up from the camp office. If not picked up within one week of the close of camp, the unused and unclaimed medication will be disposed of properly.

As long as your camper is currently enrolled in a public or private school in the United States, simply supply the name of the school on the registration form. If your camper has not yet entered school or is enrolled in a school outside of the United States, a complete immunization record must be submitted to the Health Office as soon as possible. The Camp Nurse must verify that the camper is in compliance with the immunization requirements for Maryland.

If the camper is exempt from immunizations due to medical contraindication, an immunization record signed by a licensed health care provider must be submitted. Campers not immunized according to Maryland state guidelines due to religious objections will not be permitted to attend Summer at KEY.

Campers with any symptoms of an infectious illness should not attend camp. Campers must be without a fever (less than 100°F) for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication prior to returning to camp.

Campers who become ill at camp must be picked up within one hour.

If your camper has a respiratory virus or gastrointestinal or comminicable illness:

• Keep them home if symptoms are present. These symptoms can include fever, chills, fatigue, cough, runny nose, and headache, among others.
   
• They can return to camp when, for at least 24 hours, both are true:
   
  • Their symptoms are getting better overall, AND
     
  • They have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication).

If your camper tests positive for any communicable disease, please continue to report to Key’s Health Office. Doing so allows the camp to effectively track trends in illness and mitigate potential outbreaks.

Summer at KEY will communicate with camps in the event of an outbreak.

Staff will have required health training, including the following:

• How and when to use epinephrine auto-injectors and AEDs and the steps to managing emergency situations.
• Proper hand washing protocols for both staff and campers.
• How to monitor for and report signs and symptoms of illness and injury. 

Parents/guardians are encouraged to educate their campers to use appropriate precautionary measures to stop the spread of germs. Campers will be informed at the beginning of the camp session about hand hygiene including washing hands before and after snack time, after coughing, sneezing or wiping nose, etc.