Scout camps are a real school of life for a child. Unlike at summer camps, a child must show great cleverness and independence. In order for everything to go according to plan, it is the parents’ job to prepare the child for all eventualities related to his health.
Involving children in many trainings and work on a scout trip results from an attempt to teach them resourcefulness, efficiency in action and the ability to work in a team. The knowledge acquired during the camp can be useful to the child in everyday life. However, not all tasks are easy and pleasant. Peeling potatoes, setting up a tent or lighting a fire can lead to unwanted injuries. The child should have basic knowledge of what to do in such situations.
Only perfectly healthy children do not go to scout camps. The camp adventure is also used by children struggling with e.g. allergies. It is very important to properly prepare your child for such a trip. We present the three most important health issues at the camp. Cold medications.
Giving your child a net of medicines on a trip is unnecessary. If a child catches a cold at the camp, then the tutors and medical help deal with his treatment. However, a child may carry, for example, cough syrup, the ingredients of which do not cause him any allergic reactions, fever-reducing tablets that helped him before, and a medicine for diarrhea and gastric poisoning. Of course, a small ward of the camp should inform his educator and doctor about the drugs he has. Medications should not be taken without the knowledge of these people. There may be situations where children may take medication for fun and without adult supervision. In the event of an accident, the doctor needs to know what medications the child has taken before. Lack of this knowledge can lead to disaster. Therefore, for safety, all medications owned by a camp participant and information about them should be handed over to educators.
Allergy at camp.
The principle of providing information about the medicines that our child takes applies especially to allergy sufferers. It is the educator or the camp doctor who should give the child allergy medication. Parents should prepare a written note relating to the description of the drugs and their dosage, both oral and inhaled drugs and nasal and eye drops. Mom and dad will then be sure that their child will not overdose or forget to take medication. It is good to prepare a few doses of drugs more than those specifically calculated for the trip. It may turn out that the medicines have been lost or, for example, have been spilled on tea. It’s hard to find a pharmacy in the camp wilderness, so it’s better to have allergy medications in stock.
Gluten-free diet.
If your child is on a gluten-free diet, it is essential to inform the camp management about it. Before choosing an organizer, families should find out whether a given facility will be able to prepare such a diet. It is worth describing the conditions of the diet in detail to the organizers. Do not assume that the facility will know how to prepare gluten-free dishes. Usually, however, the organizers take such children into account and ensure that they use a special diet. It is very important that the child knows what their diet consists of and what products they cannot eat (they should have a list of products with them) and what are the consequences of eating products not on the list.
Such thorough preparation for independence and responsibility for the health of oneself and others will be useful to the child for life.