Camp Health Officer

Job summary:

The Health Officer is responsible for implementing camp health care for overnight summer camp attendants and staff during the Summer Camp Season. This team member will follow camp, council, and state guidelines to oversee the physical and mental well-being of all people for the best camp experience possible. This position will oversee two Assistant Health Officers who will be trading off on staying overnight throughout the duration of the summer and must be willing to be on call for these staff members if not onsite. This position reports to the Operations and Administration Manager.

Benefits:

Summer camp changes lives for the better! Join an amazing community where you will make new friends, develop personal and professional skills, engage your body and your mind in an outdoor environment, overcome challenges, and be the best version of yourself, plus have tons of fun! As part of a team mentoring, teaching, and helping, you get to make an incredible impact on campers and staff, who remember the sense of belonging, friendship, growth, and magic of summer camp for their entire lives. Staff receive invaluable work experience that prepares you to succeed in school, in work, and in life.

Primary responsibilities include:

• Review Incoming camper health records and notify appropriate staff of any health precautions, maintaining HIPPA compliance.
• Secure and administer all camper and staff medication on schedule.
• Monitor and support camper and staff physical and mental health and promote interest in basic self-care and sanitation, including providing care and observation for sick or injured persons as needed.
• Carry out health care procedures and standing orders from the council designated camp doctor on call to make health care recommendations for campers and staff.
• Using best practices and judgement when dealing with cases that do not fall within the parameters of written procedures.
• Follow all established emergency or best practice procedures.
• Serve as crisis prevention and intervention consultation for camp staff, including providing camp management techniques and tools for prevention and intervention in areas of bullying, anger management, suicide, LGBTQ+ issues, self-harm, and appropriate social interactions.
• Documenting all health-related interactions and occurrences of campers and staff daily as well as checking the documentation of the Assistant Health Officers.
• Serve as the medical lead for camp health care team (two Assistant Health Officers).
• Champion a positive, inclusive, caring, safe, and fun camp environment and promote the values of the Girl Scout Promise and Law, including serving as a positive role model for youth in language, dress, culture of inclusion, behavior, and attitude.
• Support camper wellbeing by supervising overall physical, mental, and emotional health (including hygiene, meals, sleep, medications as applicable).
• Lead and participate in camp program activities and administration, including meals, staff trainings, meetings, planning, preparation, and cleanup as necessary.
• Facilitate positive group relationships, including addressing conflict in constructive ways.
• Advocate for camper and staff confidence, responsibility, challenge seeking, teamwork, learning, goal setting, relationship skills, coping strategies, and opportunities for personal and group success.
• Adhere to camp schedule and direct campers and self to assigned spaces on time.
• Practice all camp safety standards and emergency procedures and uphold them with others.
• Work independently and take the initiative to implement solutions to problems that arise, where appropriate.
• Work effectively with various team members and various levels of the GSNETX organization, including promoting a climate of courtesy, respect, and professionalism and adhering to camp culture.
• Work as part of a team to meet camp program and operation needs.

Qualifications

Minimum requirements:

• Experience charting, dispensing medications, and ability to teach these skills to others.
• Willingness to role model respect, positivity, smiling, cheerfulness, kindness, patience, honesty, inclusion, and accountability and to self-regulate emotions respectfully in a variety of circumstances.
• Ability to work long hours all day and all week with possible need to respond to campers or emergencies overnight (staff get personal breaktime each day).
• Ability to complete full term (all weeks) of camp agreement.
• Willingness to abstain from use of tobacco products, herbal intoxicants (CBD, THC, gummies, etc.), vaping and electronic cigarettes, alcohol, illegal drugs, firearms, and fireworks while on camp property or while on duty, plus abstain from possessing on camp property and from returning to camp under the influence of any such substances.
• Willingness to abstain from using (engaging with) cell phone while on duty (Staff phones can be stored in staff lockers and used during scheduled staff break time away from campers, plus we have a radio system for camp communication and emergencies).
• Demonstrates and promotes a climate of courtesy, respect, and professionalism to coworkers, the volunteers served by this council, and others with whom her/his position puts her/him in contact.
• Adheres to the GSNETX’s equal opportunity and non-discrimination policies, which ensure that there will be no discrimination based on race, color, ethnicity, sex, creed, national origin, socioeconomic status, disability, or age. 
• Attendance is an essential job requirement defined as having regular, consistent, reliable, punctual and predictable attendance including the ability to work regular hours and shifts, before and after hours, and on weekends, when required.
• Complete and pass a background check.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience serving youth in a work or volunteer setting.
• Experience attending summer camp or the outdoors.
• Experience as a school nurse, pediatric nurse or other health care field interacting with minors.

Our organization’s cultural values:

• We are relevant.
• We strive for equity.
• We put our stakeholders first.
• We collaborate to get the best results.
• We own our work.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Our camp environment is unique: located in northeast Texas, summers in June and July are typically hot and humid (temperatures above 100°F/38°C for consecutive days are not uncommon).  A typical camp day requires significant time outside each day, with prolonged standing and walking on our 92-acre property.  This region of Texas is also home to a variety of wildlife such as bugs, spiders, snakes, and coyotes.

Typical camp activities, crafts, and daily life often include:

• The use of hands or fingers to handle or feel objects, tools, or controls.
• The ability to reach with hands and arms, climb, balance, stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl.
• Indoors and outdoors work for prolonged hours.
• Large groups of youth and high noise levels
• Lifting/carrying and/or moving loads up to 45 pounds.

CERTIFICATIONS:

• Must be able to drive and have a valid driver’s license.
• Current RN license, LVN license, or equivalent certificate
• Certification and experience in CPR, AED usage and first aid.