Summer Camp Safety
Summer camps and day camps are a popular way for kids to spend their break once the school year ends. Camps give children the opportunity to experience all kinds of outdoor activities and games and help kids develop their athletic and social skills with camp friends. Outdoor education is another major component of many camps, so parents can expect their kids to be outside for much of the day. While camp can be a thrill and a wonderful learning experience, there are also some dangers that parents should be aware of to ensure that their children are prepared.
Camp Risks
Summer camps are a unique opportunity and therefore also have unique risks. Before sending your child to camp, be sure they understand the following risks and check to see that the camp is prepared to address them:
- Illnesses: Because children spend days together in large groups, kids can easily pick up illnesses from friends or camp workers. For camps with a large outdoor component, there is a risk of picking up a rash from poison ivy, poison oak, or poison sumac. Be sure that your child understands what these plants look like so s/he can avoid them when outside.
- Injuries: Children are prone to injuries while playing. Sometimes they may fall while running or hiking, possibly spraining or straining an ankle. A sprain injury could ruin the rest of the camp for your child, so make sure s/he has proper footwear for the scheduled activities.
- Sunburn: Children are often guilty of disregarding the warnings about not wearing sunscreen. Until they have experienced a bad burn, they may not realize how important it is to regularly apply sunscreen throughout the day. Check with the staff to make sure they plan to require kids to reapply sunscreen every hour or so. A bad sunburn could cause a little camper to miss out on exciting activities.
Important Supplies and Gear
If your child is going to camp for the summer and plans to be outside even for just a couple of hours a day, consider packing the following supplies and gear to help keep them safe:
- Proper clothing and footwear: Pack long pants and hiking boots if your child will be hiking or playing outdoors. Children without long pants can easily be exposed to poison ivy and tick bites, and hiking boots protect kids from rolled ankle injuries.
- Sunscreen: Pack plenty of sunscreen so that your camper won’t run out.
- First aid kit: While the camp staff should have plenty of first aid gear, it doesn’t hurt to pack a personal first aid kit for your child to carry around in his or her backpack when outside hiking or playing.
- Flashlight: Children who aren’t from rural areas may not realize how dark it gets in the woods and other areas without street lights. Walking in the dark increases the risk of a trip and fall injury or accidentally stepping in poison ivy or an ant hill.
For More Information
These are some of the safety risks and precautions that you can take to help keep your child safe while s/he is away at camp for the summer. To learn more about camp safety and what to do in the case of an injury, please visit the website of the Iowa personal injury lawyers of LaMarca & Landry, P.C. today.
Joseph Devine
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