Medication While at Camp

by Andrea Wackerle

Medication is pretty common at SOAR. If your child is on any type of medication, including prescription, over-the-counter, or vitamins, our staff will be responsible for administering the medication when needed. Any and all medications should be including on your child’s Health History Form. Below are a few things to note regarding your child’s medication before you get to camp.

Keep it Consistent

It is not uncommon for parents to take their child off certain medications during the summer. If you choose to do this, we ask that you do it 2-3 weeks prior to your course start date to help give your child some time to adjust to the change. If you have already submitted your paperwork, please notify us of this change.

Appropriate Packing

Please send prescription medications in the original prescription container (no pill dispensers please). Please include enough for the entire length of the course as well as a two-day surplus. If you child has liquid medication that normally comes in a glass bottle, please ask the pharmacy to use a plastic one. If your child will be flying to SOAR, please do not put their medications in checked baggage in case their bag gets misplaced or does not arrive on time.

Administration

The SOAR Staff receive extensive training on all aspects of medication administration including the common types taken by LD and AD/HD youth, their purpose and contraindications, and a standard protocol for administering the medication.  SOAR instructors will review your child’s medication information during the inbrief process.

Daytrana® Users

Campers participating in our Florida and California programs (which contain a large amount of water-based activities) who use Daytrana® patches may experience trouble keeping the patch on for the prescribed amount of time. The Daytrana® website offers the following information about patches getting wet.

  1. What happens if the Daytrana® patch gets wet while my child is wearing it?
  2. When properly applied, the Daytrana® patch is designed to stay on and keep delivering medicine. If the patch falls off, discard the old patch and a new patch can be applied to a different area of the same hip. Do not use tape, bandages, or other household adhesives to reapply the patch that no longer adheres. Exposure to water during bathing, swimming or showering may affect patch adhesion.

SOAR does not make recommendations regarding prescription medicine. However, if your child is currently using Daytrana® patches and will be attending one of our water-based courses, we do suggest talking with your child’s physician to get more information regarding the potential for the patches to come off during water activities and to discuss possible solutions.

 

Have questions? Give us a call at 828-456-3435, and we’re happy to help!

M