HOT SPRINGS — Bath Community Hospital and Camp Mont Shenandoah teamed up this summer to ensure that girls attending the camp were screened for COVID-19.
It all started when George Phillips, a Bath County citizen and a member of Bath Community Hospital’s Board of Directors, asked hospital CEO Jeff Lingerfelt how the hospital team could support a neighbor needing help navigating COVID-19 screening.
As a result, Camp Mont Shenandoah, the oldest, private, residential camp in continuous operation in the state, eagerly accepted an offer and plan extended by Kacy Carroll, infection control, at BCH.
Camp Mont Shenandoah welcomes campers from all over the U.S., and as the CDC states, “keys to a successful camp opening is utilizing a repeated COVID-19 Testing Protocol”.
Kacy’s plan to swab 350 campers requiring 400 Disposable Surgical Masks, 40 N95s, 500 Exam Gloves, 100 Disposable Safety
Gowns, and 20 Face Shields proved successful in keeping everyone safe from harm. The ebb and flow of campers arriving and departing required Kacy and his team to be on-site to conduct COVID-19 screening.
Last week, CMS welcomed the last wave of girls, the youngest, for a week-long session known as “Roots and Shoots.” A celebration of zero COVID positives followed.
“Thank you, it’s through the hospital’s help and generosity that we were able to have a successful summer!” said Ann Warner, CMS
owner and director.
With a common goal shared among Bath Community Hospital, the hospital board and Camp Mont Shenandoah to keep campers and staff safe, the pandemic didn’t stop these girls from enjoying the life-altering experience for which this camp is known. The partnership between CMS and Bath Community Hospital Physicians Clinic staff was finely tuned, and by the end of the season, the two were behaving like one. The relationship mirrors a virtue or two from the camp’s guiding philosophy – Love, Loyalty, Friendship, Sportsmanship, and Spiritual Awareness.
Started in 1927, Camp Mont Shenandoah has been owned and operated by members of the same family since 1949. Today, Ann Warner represents the third generation of ownership and serves as director, overseeing the day-to-day operations.
This summer, Camp Mont Shenandoah celebrated its 95th year. Recently listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register, it is the oldest, private, residential camp in continuous operation in the state. “Significantly, this turn-of-the-century camp is among the few places that created outdoor experiences solely for young women.
To this day, the place has retained its architectural heritage and its picturesque setting,” said Julie Langan, Director of Virginia’s Department of Historic Resources.
Bath Community Hospital, established in 1916, is a 25-bed, not-for-profit, Critical Access Hospital located in Hot Springs. Bath Community Hospital provides 24-hour emergency services and a select range of diagnostic services, rehabilitative services, pharmacy, general surgery, wellness center, and specialty clinics.