Reunion

I would like to start off the blog by expressing how grateful I am to have had the experience through Honors. I have worked with an amazing team of people. I am excited for our camp reunion this upcoming week. I don't know the itinerary for the reunion, but I think it will be a fun time. I am excited to see the campers as well as the healthcare team. I am also to see the campers reunite because they grew so close during that week. This will not be the last meeting for me at the clinic. I plan on doing what I can to help with the camp for next year.

Update!

Hi everyone!
This week I've been putting together my poster that discusses my service learning with the weight management clinic. It's going along very nicely! I also am looking forward to meeting up with the campers later this month. I have all these pictures and want to do something nice for the students. I am thinking of putting mini photobooks together for them!

Sorry for the late post!

I don't really have a huge update for this week. I am still reviewing the literature for the paper that I am planning on writing. I hope to have a rough draft or detailed outline by the end of the week. Also, I am going through all the pictures from camp and hope to have some posted for you all to see soon!

Camp SHINE Day 1

      Camp SHINE was June 5th through the 11th this year. We had a great time at camp. There were 9 campers, 6 girls and 3 boys. At camp, the children learned about a healthy diet and how to be active. I'm going to discuss each discipline's role at the camp and what we did throughout the week.

     The campers arrive on Sunday afternoon. This time was spent medically assessing the campers individually (height, weight, etc.) by the pediatrician, nurse practitioner, and dietitian. While the campers were being assessed, the parents were being informed about what would be going on at camp and what they could do at home to help their child adjust back into everyday life. The campers and the parents were also informed about the pedometer challenge. A pedometer is a device that can be placed on the shoe or hip to measure how many steps or miles a person is walking. The challenge was designed for one parent to compete with his or her child. This was a great way to motivate the campers and parents to get active. The parents were also encouraged to stay for dinner Sunday night. The dinner consisted of spaghetti, garlic bread, salad w/ Italian or ranch dressing, and crystal light. The spaghetti had a twist to it. It was turkey meat instead of beef. Our goal was to see if the campers and their parents could even tell a difference. Some did know that it was different, but reported that they enjoyed it all the same. Others had no idea. After dinner, we all went to a drum circle around a camp fire. The last thing we did was eat our bedtime snack with the campers.

More to come tomorrow!

Introduction

Hello!
     My name is Megan Armstrong and I am a senior Honors in Nursing student at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Honors in Nursing has opened the door for me to give back to the community through service learning. More information about the Honors Program and service learning can be found at the following website: http://www.uab.edu/nursing/student-information/acad-prog/honors-and-scholars-programs/nursing-honors-program
     I have partnered with Children's Center for Weight Management. The center focuses on healthy lifestyle changes using an interdisciplinary team consisting of a pediatrician, surgeon, nurse practitioner, psychologist, registered dietitian, and physical therapy. All of these different disciplines have come together to make Camp SHINE (Support, Help, Instruction, for Nutrition and Exercise). The camp is one week long at the YMCA Hargis Retreat in Chelsea, Al. The camp is for any current patient aged 10 to 14. The children focus on how to eat healthy, get active, and most of all, have fun at camp!