The Medical Care of Children at Summer Camps

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Abstract
Summer camps in the United States are attended annually by approximately 11 million children. The health and medical care needs of these children have received little attention. This study investigated the type of medical problems encountered in the traditional camp setting by analyzing 1,412 consecutive physician-camper encounters. Upper-respiratory tract infections were the most frequent reason for seeking medical attention accounting for 38% of the visits. Dermatologic (28%), gastrointestinal (9%), and skeletomuscular (8%) conditions were also common problems. Limited availability of past medical information concerning campers, absence of routine laboratory facilities, isolation from specialty consultation, and an informal accessible infirmary are factors contributing to the somewhat different nature of camp medical practice. Camps can clearly provide adequate health care by utilizing alternate staffing arrangements, such as nurse practitioners or nurses.

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