Keep your campers safe from ticks and tickborne illnesses

Does it sometimes feel like there are way more ticks now than there were 10 or 20 years ago? It’s not in your imagination—there are, indeed, many more ticks spreading disease now than there were two decades ago. There are many reasons for this increase in ticks and tickborne diseases, including changing weather patterns, which has led to rising heat and humidity that allows ticks to thrive in more places for longer periods of time. 

If you run a camp, ticks and tickborne diseases can be a major cause for concern. Your campers and staff members spend a large amount of time outdoors, and often find themselves in environments where ticks thrive. 

How to avoid ticks 

While you can’t control the number of ticks in the areas near your camp, you can decrease the chance of your staff, volunteers and campers being bitten by taking the following precautions: 

1. Use insect repellants. The best kinds of insect repellants are those that are registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). They contain DEET, picaridin, IR3535, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus (OLE), para-menthane-diol (PMD) or 2-undecanone. 

2. Spray clothes as well as skin. Instruct your campers, staff and volunteers to treat their clothes with products that contain 0.5% permethrin before they come to camp. They can use these products to treat their boots, clothing and camp-related gear. 

3. Walk in the center of trails. As much as possible, your camp programing should stick to wide-open spaces. Avoid the temptation to plan a scavenger hunt that would require campers to spend extended amounts of time amid foliage. 

4. Check clothing and skin for ticks. Establish a routine for your campers, staff and volunteers that encourages them to check for ticks every evening. If they spot a tick before it burrows deep into their skin, they reduce the risk of contracting Lyme disease or another tickborne disease. Make sure everyone checks the following areas where ticks may not be as clearly visible: 

   • Under the arms. 

   • In the ears. 

   • Between the legs. 

   • Around the waist. 

   • Back of the knees. 

   • Inside the belly button. 

   • In and around the hair. 

5. Provide ample opportunity for showering. With limited facilities, it can be difficult to control how often campers shower. But you should encourage them to at least rinse off their bodies and do a quick tick check after spending time in a particularly wooded or grassy area. 

What to do when a tick is discovered 

If you’ve found a tick attached to the skin of a camper or staff member, it is important to remove the tick as soon as possible. 

• Have fine-tipped tweezers or other tick-removal tools ready prior to summer. 

• Ensure rubbing alcohol and clean swabs are available to clean an impacted area. 

• Train staff on proper ways to remove a tick using authoritative sources such as this poster from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

• Consider contacting a medical professional as soon as possible to determine if follow-up care is needed. 

Recognizing tickborne illnesses 

Ticks can transmit more than a dozen different diseases, and most of those diseases have similar signs and symptoms. The most common symptoms include: 

• Fever and chills. 

• Rash. Several different types of diseases, including Lyme disease, Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI), Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), ehrlichiosis and tularemia can cause distinctive rashes. 

• Aches and pains. 

For most of the tickborne illnesses, early diagnosis is key. That’s why you, as a camp leader, must make sure all your staff members and volunteers know the signs of these types of diseases. Any campers displaying these symptoms should seek care right away. 

To find more tips and resources for camps like yours, visit blog.churchmutual.com/camps.