Additionally, the local community hospital agreed to collaborate in the camp and provided a hospital tour and lunch for the campers. To minimize transportation costs, campers were dropped off and picked up by their parents at the hospital for the day. The campers toured the ER, nursery, in-patient laboratory, and Sim-Man laboratory and were given an overview of physical therapy and other disciplines, such as nursing administration while at the hospital.  The local ambulance association is located a short walking distance from the hospital and agreed to provide a tour of the training facility and overview of what an EMT does.  Each facility was very supportive of the camp and provided free souvenirs such as t-shirts, cups, bags, teddy bears, and pencils that the campers really enjoyed.

Ending Ceremonies

To engage parents and show case the activities that campers were able to accomplish during the week, an ending ceremonies program was designed. The ending ceremony was scheduled for the last session on the last day and all parents were invited to attend. The ceremony consisted of highlights using a video slide show of campers and counselors during the week’s activities. The campers enjoyed seeing themselves on a big screen.  Parents enjoyed viewing what the campers did also, as this was the first year of the camp and they did not know exactly what to expect. One activity that fostered each camper’s self-esteem was when the emcee outlined one characteristic of each camper that would make them a great nurse. Each camper was visibly excited and proud to be listed by name and what personal aspect could be applied to a career in nursing. For example, one camper was exceptionally caring of the baby doll during the maternity session. She was constantly giving the doll kisses and talking to the doll. During the ending ceremonies, she was praised for her caring abilities and told that being caring and compassionate was truly needed in the nursing profession. Finally, each camper was given a certificate of completion with a small gift. The gift was an inexpensive toy, poster, or gift souvenir that helped to highlight the child’s personal interest or special quality noted during the team building activity. For example, one of the campers identified herself as kickball Kayla, indicating that she enjoyed the game of kickball. Her departing gift was a kickball to bring home with her. The hope is that she will be able to share this parting gift with her friends and have something to remember her time at camp.

Evaluation – Recommendations for Next Year

As this camp moves forward, a few changes will be made. Earlier deadlines for registration, reconsideration of providing lunches, and the introduction of scholarships are among the largest changes. Additionally, outreach to the campers to see if their interest in nursing continues is being considered.    

One week before the camp was to begin only five campers were registered. Camp administrators were disappointed but decided to run the camp in hopes of benefiting at least five campers. The week before the camp began six more campers registered, with the final two the Friday before the camp began. Since sign up deadlines were not defined at an earlier time, session designers had to make last minute changes to their plans and number of supplies to accommodate the larger number of campers. Next year a registration deadline of at least the Wednesday before the camp week begins (4-5 days before camp begins) will be advertised and maintained. Again the primary reasoning for this would be to allow sufficient time for planning and obtaining the appropriate amount of supplies.

Camp administrators first thought it would be easier to provide lunch for the campers.  However, some of the campers presented with specific food requests. While no kid went hungry, trying to accommodate the varied taste preferences and nutritional needs took more time and effort than first anticipated. The focus of the camp was for counselors and campers to have fun and support education. Therefore, in future years, the camp will provide morning and afternoon drinks and snacks as part of the registration fee. Additionally, lunches will continue to be provided to volunteers and a few extra lunches available for campers who may forget their lunch.

Another area to be reconsidered was the inclusion of campers who may not be able to afford the camp. One parent who wanted to register their child was prohibited as the registration fee was not in the family budget. For the first year of the camp no scholarship was designed to cover the cost of registration. Designing and marketing a few scholarships is something the camp organizers will review for the next year.

There were a few areas of outreach that assisted with the camp evaluation. During the week, many photos were taken and used in the slide show and camp promotion. Due to time and other responsibilities the camp director was not able to provide printed copies of photographs for the campers and families. The following week when time allowed the director emailed 2-3 photos of their child to parents. Most replied with thank you notes and praise for the camp.

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