Evaluation report
502 Adapting to COVID19: Can Virtual Burn Camp be as Impactful as Last Year’s In-person Camp?
Banks J, Ferdock M, Nagle J ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001Camp Susquehanna, a 25-year-old summer camp for children who have survived burn injuries, moved to a fully online format during COVID-19 in July 2020. The camp provided three weeks of structured activities, with materials mailed to participants' homes to ensure access. The study compared self-esteem, happiness, and satisfaction outcomes between the virtual camp and previous in-person camps to determine if the online format could maintain the same positive impact.
Key points
- 42 campers and 22 volunteer counselors participated in the virtual three-week program held in July 2020
- The camp ensured all children had internet access and mailed 'camp in the box' containing supplies for planned activities
- Campers received support from both staff and peers despite the virtual format
- Self-esteem, happiness, and satisfaction levels matched or exceeded previous years' in-person camp results
- The positive effects on campers remained consistent despite the different delivery method
Limitations
The document does not provide specific quantitative data, statistical analysis, or detailed comparison metrics between virtual and in-person camps. The study lacks information on potential differences in outcomes by age group, burn severity, or other demographic factors.
Abstract
Abstract Introduction Skin is not the only casualty following a burn accident. Many children suffer long term, debilitating emotional effects from their burn injury (Abdullah et al. 1994; Kornhaber et al. 2018). Armstrong-James et al. (2018) and Maslow and Lobato (2010) found that summer camps explicitly designed for burn survivor children can positively impact children’s adaptability to stares and comments and improve their sense of self-esteem. Camp Susquehanna has been a summer camp for burn survivors for the past 25+ years. When the COVID19 pandemic closed many businesses, we decided to transition our in-person camp to 100% online. Researchers demonstrated the positive effects of summer camp for burn survivors (Maslow & Lobato, 2010; Bakker et al. 2011). However, the effects of a 100% online camp are not known. Our concern was, are we able to transition and be as impactful as it is face to face at camp? What will the schedule and activities look like in this new format? How will we ensure all children participating will have access to online and the supplies necessary? Methods We opted to select a three-week format with two sessions a day divided into two age groups. We ensured every child had internet access then mailed out a “camp in the box.” It contained all the things needed for each planned activity. The critical question remained, however, will we be as impactful? The current research looks at quantitative and qualitative measures of self-esteem, happiness, and satisfaction following participation in a three-week summer program held in July 2020. We make comparisons to previous years’ results. The authors expected that self-esteem, happiness, and satisfaction levels matched or exceeded last years’ levels. Results We collected data from 42 campers and 22 volunteer camp counselors. Results show that campers were able to receive the support they needed, not only from the staff but also from their peers. Conclusions The delivery method was indeed different this year, but the positive effect on our campers remained the same.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- Three-week virtual summer camp with structured daily activities delivered online, supplemented with mailed activity materials ('camp in the box'), with separate sessions for two age groups
- Population
- 42 children who are burn survivors, supported by 22 volunteer counselors
Key finding
Campers received needed support from staff and peers in the virtual format