Sent home from summer camp

[Anonymous]

A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The frequent check-ins was a suggestion not a requirement. It is something teachers might do as a simple accommodation. They made the decision without reading any of the paperwork so it wasn’t a factor. It was a medical clearance with suggestions from a counselor, not requirements. Counselors make suggestions as part of their jobs.

Frequent check ins - as in like a 504 accommodation for a kid with ADHD, is WAY different than frequent check in for mental health, like checking to see if someone has cut themselves. It's not the same at all.

She didnt cut herself. She scratched herself with her arm. The counselor didn’t suggest check ins to check her arms. He suggested a check in that could be her giving a thumbs up or down. It doesn’t require extra staff or extra training. It is like a “Are you having a good day or not?” kind of check in.




kind of check in.

So the camp felt a daily mental health check in which was medically recommended by YOUR mental health counselor was something their staff could not handle but you don’t think it should have been?

If that’s the case op, I think they are right. And I think you are so caught up in defending your daughter’s rights that you are losing sight of what’s best for her. Everything you are modeling for her right now reinforces the behaviors that will get her excluded her from other activities (and social situations) as well. You can accommodate her struggles but still hold her accountable for her reactions. The staff complained that her sarcasm interfered with their ability to gauge her mental health. It’s not surprising they didn’t want to risk it happening again. Talk to your daughter. Stop trying to protect her from the consequences of her own behavior.

They didn’t even read any of the results. They didn’t know about the suggestion to do daily check-ins. They could have met with us and gone over the results but they made the decision to completely disregard or ignore (not read) the medical information. If they met with us and then said that they couldn’t do daily check-ins that would have been a different story.

Imagine if they had to do this with every kid at camp. The reality is that it is just easier to dismiss your kid. Call the director and find out what was going on behaviorally (you have not gotten the full picture). Tell the director your kid thought she was going to be able to come back to camp and was really disappointed. Suggest they be more clear in the future to spare kids' feelings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

Well apparently the counselor had enough concern to make recommendations for a frequent check in among other things that were not shared. That’s not nothing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

Well apparently the counselor had enough concern to make recommendations for a frequent check in among other things that were not shared. That’s not nothing.

It is a pretty simple one to implement that doesn’t require extra staff or training. This is an overnight camp where they should already be doing check- ins just to ensure that all campers are present.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

Well apparently the counselor had enough concern to make recommendations for a frequent check in among other things that were not shared. That’s not nothing.

It is a pretty simple one to implement that doesn’t require extra staff or training. This is an overnight camp where they should already be doing check- ins just to ensure that all campers are present.

I’m sure mom would be furious if DD hurt herself in between the frequent check ins.

[Anonymous]

I would make this a learning experience for her that actions and words have consequences. It might be a far better lesson to have learned than not at this stage in life.

[Anonymous]

I am so sorry this happened to your daughter and you. I hope that you are able to reframe it for your daughter so that she feels successful in the time that she spent there and not even more anxious as a result. I am sending you compassion because it is so hard as a parent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

Well apparently the counselor had enough concern to make recommendations for a frequent check in among other things that were not shared. That’s not nothing.

It is a pretty simple one to implement that doesn’t require extra staff or training. This is an overnight camp where they should already be doing check- ins just to ensure that all campers are present.

How do you know what is easy or not to implement? Also OP said it was “one” of the counselor’s suggestions? What were the others? OP is clearly downplaying all of this and minimizing the concerns the camp and counselor have. A check in is likely more than just taking attendance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

Well apparently the counselor had enough concern to make recommendations for a frequent check in among other things that were not shared. That’s not nothing.

It is a pretty simple one to implement that doesn’t require extra staff or training. This is an overnight camp where they should already be doing check- ins just to ensure that all campers are present.

Frequent check in isn’t an easy strategy because it comes with the possibility that you will need to do something with the information from the check in. So, in this case, if the untrained teenager counselor checks in and the kid has new scratches, or reports that they are overwhelmed, what is the counselor going to do, and who will take on the counselor’s responsibility while the counselor is focused on one kid?

This is particularly true when a kid isn’t a reliable reporter. This kid apparently didn’t tell her counselor the truth when the counselor checked in about the scratches, and hasn’t told her parents the truth so they need to try to guess what happened from the therapist’s notes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

A kid who is making jokes that are serious enough that 911 is called should be expelled with no refunds. OP needs to stay far away from that excuse as it will not help her case.

[Anonymous]

If every kid who used the abbreviations KMS on social media or had spoken those words outloud, had EMS called, ERs would be even more overcrowded.

[Anonymous]

Some kids blurt out without thinking. It is good to remind them that this can have consequences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

A kid who is making jokes that are serious enough that 911 is called should be expelled with no refunds. OP needs to stay far away from that excuse as it will not help her case.

What if schools did this? For example, Johnny got caught vaping. The principal says the Johnny is suspended for 10 days unless he receives a drug evaluation then he can return in 3 days.
His parents take Johnny to the evaluation. In this case, the requirement does not depend on the results. He just has to show that he went to an evaluation. Johnny does this and returns to school after two days. The principal changes his mind and sends Johnny home for 7 more days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

A kid who is making jokes that are serious enough that 911 is called should be expelled with no refunds. OP needs to stay far away from that excuse as it will not help her case.

What if schools did this? For example, Johnny got caught vaping. The principal says the Johnny is suspended for 10 days unless he receives a drug evaluation then he can return in 3 days.
His parents take Johnny to the evaluation. In this case, the requirement does not depend on the results. He just has to show that he went to an evaluation. Johnny does this and returns to school after two days. The principal changes his mind and sends Johnny home for 7 more days.

Typo, meant to say he returns after the 3 days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A camp nurse can be an LPN or an RN.
LPN’s have a one year training program.
They might not have much training in mental health.
A medical doctor and a counselor/clinician are able to make the determination if someone was joking or not.

Well apparently the counselor had enough concern to make recommendations for a frequent check in among other things that were not shared. That’s not nothing.

It is a pretty simple one to implement that doesn’t require extra staff or training. This is an overnight camp where they should already be doing check- ins just to ensure that all campers are present.

You are so wrong here. Besides the fact that you have to figure out what a check in means and how to do it, you have to train the staff on documentation. There could be state regulations surrounding that and also regulations surrounding who can actually perform the check in. Then someone has to interpret the response and consider whether it is congruent with the behavior. And if things are not ok, there needs to be a plan and staff.

OP you really don’t get that this is serious.