HOME › Forums › Camp Health › What guidelines are camps using to determine when to cancel sessions?
Tagged: covid, isolation, Staffing ratio
- This topic has 2 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 2 years, 6 months ago by
Tracey Gaslin.
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July 26, 2022 at 1:31 am #45487
Sondra Veldey
ParticipantWe have 4 staff positive for COVID and another 3 staff who are testing negative but have URI symptoms and N/V. What guidelines are camps using to determine when to close? We have the space to isolate our ill staff, but we are right up against our staffing ratio. Recommendations?
Thanks- Sondra Veldey, RN
August 1, 2022 at 11:07 pm #45561Marie Brick
ParticipantSondra,
Unfortunately, I think it is really dependent upon your individual camp situation. This summer has been really difficult from a staffing perspective due to covid. We struggled to hire enough staff to cover our activity areas and campers in the first place then within the first week covid started in our camp. We were isolating sick counselors and campers at an offsite location for the first 5 days then allowing them back to camp with outside activities only and a KN95 mask for any inside or close encounters, but they still had to sleep offsite until day 10. It spread fairly quickly through our counselors at both our boys and girls camp within the first 2 weeks of camp. I’m pretty sure we were down almost 15 counselors in total by week 3 which was extremely difficult. “Luckily” it was somewhat staggered so as someone else went down a previously positive counselor was coming back into the mix. We ended up having to have leadership step into several teaching and cabin counselor roles just to keep our camp functioning. We managed to keep most campers from getting covid and have only had about 10 campers total who tested positive.
It’s been very frustrating though because we could see a direct line of when and where the counselors starting getting sick and who/where it began but getting the counselors to take it seriously and stop interacting was virtually impossible. As the nurse, if I had had it my way, we would have locked down camp for a week (ie. no counselors allowed off camp grounds for days/nights off to reduce the spread} but I was “over-ruled” by leadership and therefore left to deal with the growing mess. We have managed to avoid anything further thus far (knocking on wood) and only have 1 week of camp left.
August 2, 2022 at 1:09 am #45562Tracey Gaslin
MemberSondra:
So great to hear from you. Decisions about closing camp involve a variety of people. Some of the decisions are insurance dependent. If insurance is to cover “costs during loss” they will want to be involved in the decision to close. There is also the public health officials who assist in making the decision in conjunction with your camp leadership.
It is complex in that good communication has to be ongoing and effective to care for ill individuals while also still providing quality services to campers. Nonpharmaceutical interventions still work – use them. We know camps are “COVID weary” but we also know that the NPIs work – really work. Camps that have robust communicable disease plans are having much better success in minimizing transmission than camps who have chosen not to use preventative measures.
Hang in there. Hopefully your summer season is coming to an end. We are glad to provide support and guidance if helpful.
Best to you
Tracey Gaslin -
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