MEDICAL DIRECTORS CORNER Each year we will serve 430 children with diabetes aged 8-15 from across the state of Texas. Campers are fortunate to attend at no cost to their families. They never have...and never will. I have attended this camp every year since 1981. I have a medical staff of over 50 people with a collective experience of over 150 years at this location. Plus many of the staff, myself included, live with type 1 diabetes and many of our medical professionals specialize in diabetes in children, plus many of our staff (counselors and med staff) have type 1 diabetes themselves. I will straight up tell you our credentials to serve here are not in question. With question, I would entrust the lives of my own children or grandchildren to the Texas Lions Camp. Having said that, for many of you reading this, today may be the first time in years that youve let your child with diabetes spend time away from your direct care. Frankly, this is harder for you than it is for them. But unlike the hordes of counselors and med staff whose job it is to lift up these kids and get them involved in the camp and its programs, you may be left feeling a mild sense of what do I do now? Many of you may take long naps and get better nights sleep, at least I hope. Try not to feel guilty about that. You deserve it. Many may reconnect with loved ones, such as spouses and other members of the family. These are all good uses of your time. Doing something for yourself is a good thing, not a selfish act. I do know that trust is earned and not given, but I would ask all parents of new campers to give us a chance to show you what we can do to help your son or daughter with diabetes. The goals of camp are straightforward: safety first, fun second, learning third. Over the years, this ethic has lifted this camp into the highest of echelons of camping locations in the country. Im proud to be affiliated with this camp and its people. Im proud to also be a Lion myself. Now to some specific points. We do not call parents on the phone to check in unless there is a defined medical need to do so. A high blood sugar or ketones is not a reason for a call. Only if we start an IV or send someone to the hospital or if a serious injury occurs would that be needed. Last week we had zero diabetes related medical emergencies. If these do happen, you will hear from either me or my co-director, Dr. Peter Kwan. Understand that there is no diabetes situation we cannot address. Frankly, we have the experience to break down any problem and create an effective care solution. Its what we do, its what we teach. I also never said a goal of camp was to tightly control blood sugars. This is not home, they are not eating home food, and they are in different activities than at home. We also have them in our care for just 6 days and 5 nights. Are we perfect? Certainly not, no one is. Do we care and do we aim to do the best we can? Absolutely. So...please give TLC a chance to show you what we can do to meet the goals Ive mentioned above. Your camper will go home a different child than when they came in yesterday. Most likely for the better in my humble opinion. But camp is not for everyone. Not only may children not be ready, but parents may not be ready to allow their kids to attend. I understand and appreciate that fact. Just be assured that Dr. Steve and his team has your back in regards to your most valuable possession: your child. I respect that privilege and think about it every day. Thanks for your faith in us. Thanks for reading this post and feel free to comment.
Posted on: Mon, 04 Aug 2014 18:06:35 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015