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Head to
Camp for the Summer
by Dona DeZube
Summary Thousands of summer camps need resident nurses. The pay
is low, but the perks can be great. Make a difference in children's lives
for the summer.
If you're looking to take a break from hospital or office work this summer
and don't mind finding ants in your toothbrush, you may want to think
about summer camp nursing slots.
Taking a job as a camp nurse lets you go back to camp. You can indulge
a special interest, like surfing or horseback riding, work at a religiously
focused camp or find fulfillment tending to campers who have chronic illnesses.
Mom Away from Home
One of the biggest cultural differences between camp nursing and traditional
nursing involves medications. In other settings, patients are encouraged
to be self-sufficient. At camp, however, the picture changes. Since camp
staffs stand in for parents, the camp nurse has to make sure everyone
is taking their medications, watch for side effects and monitor kids with
chronic diseases such as asthma, diabetes or epilepsy.
On the positive side, camps are full of joy. "Camp is a fun place;
this isn't a critical care unit," says Linda Erceg, executive director
of the Association of Camp Nurses, whose Web
site includes tips on camp nursing and training seminars. "People
with a headache probably just have a headache from the sun and not a brain
tumor." Of course, you still have to be competent enough to recognize
the symptoms in the one child who really might have a brain tumor, she
adds.
Camp nurses also become the local health department, checking everything
from whether the kitchen and bathrooms are sanitary to the frequency kids
are changing their underwear. Some camps also blend public health nursing
into the camp curriculum by having the nurse teach first aide or babysitting
courses to campers.
It Won't Make You Rich
The salary you make at a camp will be lower than what you'd make in virtually
any other practice setting. "If you're going into this to make money,
look at another field," Erceg says. "Most jobs will pay $300
to $500 a week, plus room and board, although I've seen a private camp
pay $1,000 a week just to get a nurse on staff,"
The fringe benefits may include camp time for your kids, travel allowances,
health and accident insurance and membership in camp nurse associations.
While most camps need full-time nurses, some hire part-timers -- although
part-time positions are usually more in demand, so the competition is
keener, says Diana Molavi, coordinator of academic programs for Johns
Hopkins University's Center for Talented Youth.
Molavi says the full-time slots are more intense than the part-time slots,
because the resident nurses are on call 24/7. The best camp nurses are
unflappable multitaskers who are comfortable when they have to make judgment
calls. Of course, summer nurses aren't totally on their own; camps usually
have relationships with local physicians who sign standing orders.
Scenic Settings
While there are many appealing camp locations, you can't just head to
a camp in another state and start nursing. You'll need to be licensed
in the state where the camp is located. In general, state nursing certification/licensing
boards offer reciprocity, but you'll have to plan ahead and can't expect
to go through the licensing process instantly.
Of course those remote settings may look beautiful, but they can be deadly.
Many camps are located far from definitive care facilities, meaning the
camp nurse is 911. Based on the American Red Cross definition of the golden
hour to respond to injury, camps more than one hour from definitive care
follow a wilderness medical protocol, which they probably didn't include
in your nursing coursework. Those who work in remote settings, such as
adventure camps, often have wilderness EMT certification or other training
courses offered by groups such as the Wilderness
Medical Society.
Other benefits are less tangible. There's the beauty of nature and the
chance to work outdoors in the summer without having to wear pantyhose.
Most of all, there's the perk no one can measure: The value of becoming
a child's medical hero.
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