Camper Health & Safety

Camper Medical Information

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Medical Insurance
Parent Notification Policy
Medication Information
Camper Hygiene
Lice Check Information
Camper Homesickness
Camper Safety

Nurse Information

Each camp session has at least one medical professional on site 24/7 for the duration of the session. During the session, the camp nurse administers camper medication, cares for minor injuries and illnesses, and often offers support and comfort for homesick campers. Campers are encouraged to visit the nurse if they have any health concerns during their time at camp, day or night, as long as their counselor knows they are going there.

All medications (prescription and non-prescription) are stored in a locked cabinet in the nurse’s cabin, which consists of private sleeping quarters for the nursing staff, a private bathroom, and sleeping spaces for as many as three campers at one time, in addition to the medical supplies storage areas.

If a camper becomes injured or sick, the camp nurse will do the initial assessment and determine the best course of action. If a situation warrants a camper visiting a doctor, hospital, or returning home, the camp nurse will communicate with the parent/guardian of the child directly to determine the next steps. Ultimately, the decision will ALWAYS be up to the parent of the child.

In the event outside medical treatment is deemed necessary, the camper will be accompanied by at least two staff to the local medical clinic, which is located less than 45 minutes from camp, in Yakima. In the event of an emergency, the camper will be accompanied by at least two staff to Memorial Hospital, located on Tieton Drive in Yakima, where a variety of specialists are on staff. The hospital is 45 minutes from camp and has earned a fine reputation in providing 24-hour medical care.

Medical Insurance
In the case that outside medical care is needed, the parents or guardians of the camper are responsible for costs incurred, just as it is in a sports league the camper might participate in.

Camp Ghormley desires to be proactive in its treatment of minors in our care. The following is a list of health and safety related situations in which parents/guardians will automatically be notified:

• Injury or illness resulting in outside care being warranted
• Symptoms of COVID-19
• Fever of 100.4 degrees or more (if greater than 101, camper must go home)
• Loss of consciousness
• Camper staying at the nurse station for more than three hours (not including sleep)
• Vomiting w/ accompanying signs of illness
• Diarrhea (Either 3 episodes in one day, or diarrhea lasting longer than 24 hours)
• Observed self-harm tendencies (including self-harm attempts)
• Bed-wetting w/o prior history noted in camper medical forms
• Homesickness reported after the first 24 hours on-site
• Anaphylactic reaction resulting in epi-pen utilization
• Lice
• Animal bites (including ticks)
• Seizure
• Bed bugs

If your camper will be taking any form of medication (including topical and over-the-counter medications) while he/she is at camp, please bring the medication in its original packaging with the camper’s name written on all containers. At check-in, you will be directed to the nurse’s table, where you will give the medication and any instructions to the nurse. The nurse will administer the medications throughout your camper’s time at camp. No medications are allowed in cabins with the campers. The only exceptions include inhalers and epipens.

Please do not take your child off regular medicines while at camp.

Camper Hygiene

All campers are supervised daily for personal cleanliness and good grooming by their cabin counselors. Camp policy requires each camper to shower at least every other day and brush their teeth in the morning each day. Hand sanitizer is provided in the dining hall at each meal. Campers are also instructed to change all clothing every day.

In addition, daily cabin inspections are done by our staff to attempt to maintain cabin cleanliness.

Lice Check Information

For the safety of your camper and all the campers at camp, we ask that all parents complete a lice check for their camper(s) 48 hours or less before arrival at camp. Should you choose not to perform a lice check, our camp nurse will complete a lice check within 24 hours after your camper’s arrival. If a camper is found to have lice while at camp, they will be required to return home until they have been fully treated. For more information on how to perform a lice check, click here.

Our desire at Ghormley is to partner with you to handle any homesickness that happens at camp. You know your child best!
The first night of camp, homesickness is normal for some children. Counselors tell struggling campers that this is normal. They try to focus the conversations on the fun and excitement that will happen on the next day. Staff pray with homesick campers and comfort them.

If homesickness persists, and if it does not go away during activities and action, our Program Director will call home and alert parents to the situation. We’ll ask parents what they think we should do to better encourage the camper. We are a team with the parents to give a camper the best time possible.

In combating homesickness, we have found that it is usually DETRIMENTAL to have a homesick camper talk to mom or dad. If the camper is persistent in asking to talk to their parents, we ask the parents what they think, and they can make the decision. In most cases, when the parent passes the message through us that they love their child and know the camper will have an excellent week, the camper does fine. Occasionally, it is best for the camper to go home because they are not ready for camp. That is OKAY! We can try it again next year!

Camper Safety Information

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Camper Supervision
Staff Certifications
Swim Test Information

Redbox

All campers will receive a safety orientation after dinner on the first night of camp. This will include information about camp rules and expectations, camp boundaries, and our Redbox reporting system.

We have installed two anonymous reporting boxes at camp in which your child can report suspicious or harmful activity that they are seeing or enduring. We call this system Redbox, and it will be checked twice daily by a female staff member without direct access to campers.

For information on our bullying, fighting, and inappropriate behavior policies, see: Youth Camp Policies

Our counselors are an integral part of providing excellent care to our campers. At least one counselor is assigned for every eight children, and whenever possible a Jr. Counselor is assigned to every cabin. The counselors sleep in the cabin with the campers and supervise the group throughout the day. All of our counselors attend a two-week orientation at the beginning of the summer, prior to camper arrival, to train in program areas, learn our emergency procedures, and understand health and safety precautions.

We also encourage you to talk with your children before they arrive about the need to be brave enough to talk to their counselor if a situation arises that makes them uncomfortable. Counselors are often pulled in many directions, and while they work hard to gauge how their kids are doing, some kids are more adept at hiding their feelings, and many do it because they are afraid to go talk to their counselor. Their counselors are trained to take any issue seriously and it may save your child from a lot of stress if they know before they even arrive that their counselor is “in their corner”.

All staff are currently certified in CPR and First Aid training.

All Lifeguards are Red Cross certified Lifeguards, with additional levels of training in aquatic CPR/First Aid beyond what the rest of our staff receives.

All ropes course facilitators are industry-certified site-specific challenge course facilitators.

All staff have current WA Food Handlers Permits.

All staff attend two weeks of pre-camp training, and are trained in topics such as child abuse prevention, child behavioral characteristics and management, and emergency response procedures.

After you have completed the check-in process on the first day of camp, your camper will have the opportunity to take the swim test at our pool. Passing the swim test allows your camper to swim in the deep end of the pool, use the pool slides, and for Middle School and High School Camps, participate in the water activities at Lake Day. Your camper will also have the opportunity to take the swim test during free time.

For Primary and Junior campers, the swim test involves swimming across the width of the pool one time.

For Middle School and Teen Camp campers, the swim test involves swimming two laps of the pool and treading water for one minute.

If your camper does not take the swim test or does not pass it, there are plenty of other activities to do! Your camper will not be excluded from any all-camp activities.