Your In-Depth Guide to Medication at Overnight Youth Camp

When campers are spending multiple nights away from home, the topic of medication brings up a lot of questions. How can I make sure my camper gets their prescriptions? What if they just need some Tylenol? Do I pack it in their bag?

We distribute more than 200,000 medications each year, and put a lot of time, effort, and energy into training both our camp staff and medical staff to provide the highest level of care possible when it comes to storing, distributing, and overseeing medication.

Not only are we seeking to provide a high level of care, we also have a number of federal and state regulations to abide by when it comes to the proper storage and administration of medication. Some of our policies are based directly on those regulations.

Types of Meds

We break medication into three categories:

1. Prescription medication
2. Over-the-counter medication
3. Vitamins and supplements

You might be saying, “Wait, vitamins and supplements aren’t medication! Why are they on this list?” Out of an abundance of caution (and to prevent access to other campers), we include vitamins and supplements in the category of medication.

We’ll break down each category down below, but first a note on packing meds.

Packing Meds

No meds in luggage

No matter what type of medication you are considering sending with your camper, all medication must be kept securely in our health center. This is a government regulation we strictly enforce (and exceed by including vitamins and supplements).

This means do not pack any medication in camper luggage (prescription, over-the counter, or vitamins & supplements). If our staff find any medication, it will be taken up. If the items are labeled with a doctor’s note or prescription label, it will be turned over to the clinic. But if the items do not have a doctor’s note or prescription label, it will be stored in our camp office for the duration of the session.

Use original containers / packaging

We need medication to be in its original container or packaging with the dosage instructions clearly printed. State regulations require all medication to be in containers processed by a pharmacist or manufacturer. We know it’s tempting to put all the pills into ziplock baggies or a pill organizer, but please don’t create a headache for yourself when you arrive at camp!

This legal requirement also applies to boxed medications like inhalers, epi-pens and prescription creams. So either pack the box, or ask your pharmacy to print you an additional label that you can stick to the inhaler, packet, or tube.

Only send what your camper needs

If your camper is coming for six nights and takes an evening medication, only send six pills/doses and leave the rest at home! It’s illegal for us to mail prescription medication, so if you forget the bottle at pick-up, you’re not wasting (potentially expensive) meds.

If your camper takes a daily morning med, don’t forget to give it to them after pick-up! The last time we administer meds is Friday night, except for our two-week campers on their stay-over weekend.

Prescription Medication

Here’s a handy infographic checklist to follow to see if you can bring your camper’s prescription medication. All yes boxes checked? You’re good to go! If you check any “no” box, work with your doctor or pharmacist to get the answer to “yes.”

Almost all of these requirements are legal requirements we must follow. Medications must be on camper health forms for medical safety. We ask parents to only send the dosage needed for the session to avoid wasting (potentially expensive) medication. We legally cannot mail prescription medication, so if medication is not picked up at the end of your camper’s session, you would either need to drive back to camp to get it or we would need to dispose of it.

Over-the-Counter (OTC) Medication

This infographic walks through what you need to know about bringing an over-the-counter (OTC) medication to camp.

The surprise for most parents is that they probably don’t need to send any OTC meds! We are fully stocked with all the standard medications we’ll need for camper needs during their session. They are welcome to visit the nurse’s station whenever they need to get an OTC med for bug bites, headaches, stomachaches, and other more common troubles.

Here are some notes to further explain the “why” behind the requirements:

• The most common OTC medicine that parents turn into the nurse is an OTC allergy med. If your camper needs a daily allergy med, the best thing to send is those individually packaged allergy pills. Remove the pills they don’t need from the box and send the box with the right number of individually packaged allergy pills. You can also send an OTC pill bottle with the exact number of necessary pills.
• We legally cannot administer any medication that is not FDA-approved unless we have a doctor’s note.
• We legally must follow the dosing instructions on the medication unless we have a doctor’s note. So if your camper is under 12 years of age and takes an allergy medication that isn’t recommended for 12 and under on the dosing instructions, we’ll need a doctor’s note to authorize us to give it to them.

Vitamins & Supplements

In general, we recommend that parents skip vitamins and/or supplements for their camper’s session, since they are rarely essential to health over a short period of time. Requiring your camper to take a vitamin and/or supplement at camp means they will need to stand in the meds line at meals, which most campers prefer not to do.

If you do want to send a vitamin or supplement, here’s an infographic walking through what you will need.

When it comes to dosage, the most common issue parents encounter is with melatonin. Check your melatonin packaging and see what the recommended dosage is. If you need them to take more than the recommended amount, we’ll need a physician’s note. Keep in mind that your camper will be pretty worn out (in the best way!) by the end of the day, and likely will not need melatonin at all.

Everything Goes on the Medical Form

It is critical to communicate about your camper’s medical needs on the camper’s medical form. These forms become available in your account to fill out one month before your camper’s camp session. It’s important to have ALL medications (including any over-the-counter meds you are sending for a daily dose) on the medical form before we can accept them at check-in. If you make any last-minute changes to your child’s medication before arrival at camp, make sure you also update the medical form. 

If this is your first overnight camp experience, you also completed a required health information form as part of your registration. This is the form where you will make sure to let us know about any bigger picture concerns, like diabetes or individual care needs your camper may have. It’s important to let us know about these needs as soon as possible before their camp session so we can make sure both our camp teams and medical teams are prepared to serve them safely.

If your camper is going to self-carry anything, please explain that your camper will be carrying these things with them on the medical form, upload your allergy action plan, and check in with the nurse upon arrival. We encourage you to send a second item to keep at the health center for easy accessibility in case a camper forgets an item in their cabin.

What About…?

What if my camper needs to carry an epi-pen? Should my camper take a medication vacation while at camp? When are meds given out? Check our medication FAQs page for more answers to specific questions.

I Still Have a Question

If you have additional questions or concerns about your camper’s medical care, email us!

For our East Texas camps (Towers, Ranch, Timbers, and Shores), email etx-med@pinecove.com.
For our Central Texas camps (Silverado, Outback, and Ridge), email ctx-med@pinecove.com.
For our Southeast camp (Springs, Springs Pro), email se-med@pinecove.com.