ANN ARBOR, Mich., Sept. 07, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CampDoc.com, the leading electronic health record system for camps, is excited to continue their efforts in camp medical research in collaboration with the University of Michigan. Over the past two years, CampDoc.com has contributed to studies that evaluated head lice, food allergies, and disaster and emergency preparedness at camps across the country. Their research has been presented at conferences for the American Academy of Pediatrics, the World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine, the Society of Academic Emergency Medicine, and Pediatric Academic Societies.
“There is limited epidemiologic data from summer camps, and what exists is mostly limited to injuries,” said Dr. Andrew Hashikawa Assistant Professor of Pediatric Emergency Medicine at the University of Michigan. “We are hopeful that camp directors and camp nurses will find our research helpful as they work to improve the health and safety at their camps.”
University of Michigan pediatrician, Dr. Ashley DeHudy, presented data from a study on head lice detection and management practices at summer camps at the Association of Camp Nursing Conference and the American Camp Association National Conference earlier this year. DeHudy found that 30% of camps had a “no nit” policy, which excludes campers based on the presence of lice eggs rather than live lice, despite the American Academy of Pediatrics recommending that children should not be excluded based on the presence of “nits only.”
Earlier this year, the article Food Allergy Trends and Epinephrine Autoinjector Presence in Summer Camps was published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice. The study found that 2.5% of campers had documented food allergies, and of these campers, 22% had multiple food allergies. Nuts (81%), seafood (17.4%), egg (8.5%), fruit (8.1%), and seeds (7.2%) were the top five food allergies reported. The article describes how over one-third of children with food allergies are potentially at a higher risk for anaphylaxis based on a concurrent diagnosis of asthma, and how almost 60% of children with food allergies did not have an epinephrine autoinjector with them at camp. “We are hopeful that our efforts will strengthen camp policies and educational materials,” said Dr. Natalie Schellpfeffer, lead author of the study. “Lawmakers should continue to strongly consider making emergency epinephrine autoinjectors available for summer camps.”
CampDoc.com most recently collaborated on a study published in the Southern Medical Journal in August 2017. The article, Assessing Disaster Preparedness Among Select Children’s Summer Camps in the United States and Canada, concludes that the majority of camps are missing critical components of disaster planning which could prevent them from ensuring the safety of their campers during a disaster. The study also found that disaster plans often failed to account for children with special needs or medical needs and did not have methods for the safe reunification of campers and caregivers.
Future research efforts for CampDoc.com will continue, and they are planning to evaluate head injuries and concussions at summer camp for an upcoming study, along with digital media use in camp settings. Camps interested in learning more about CampDoc.com research efforts should visit www.campdoc.com/research or contact CampDoc.com for more information.
About CampDoc.com
CampDoc.com, a division of DocNetwork LLC, is an international, comprehensive electronic health record system, offering solutions to improve efficiency and maximize safety in local camp communities. A collaborative effort between camp doctors, nurses and camp directors, CampDoc.com helps summer camps manage health forms, allergies/medications, and illness/injury tracking. CampDoc.com also offers free online registration, travel and emergency medical protection, discounted camp medical supplies, and one-way parent emails for children at summer camp. For more information about CampDoc.com and web-based health management, please visit www.campdoc.com or call 734-636-1000.