Octapharma USA has provided a grant to fund the first National Camp Exchange (NCE) for the bleeding disorders community, an adjunct program of the North American Camping Conference of Hemophilia Organizations (NACCHO). NCE will enable professionals who plan, organize and operate camps for the bleeding disorders community to share experiences, ideas and enhance camp programs nationally.
The Arizona Hemophilia Association (AHA) manages NACCHO, a national conference for camp organizers, which has attracted thousands of attendees from more than 40 countries over the last 14 years. NCE will allow camp professionals to attend different bleeding disorders camps around the country in order to share lessons learned, suggest enhancements and develop leadership skills. AHA will partner with the Wingmen Foundation, a nonprofit organization providing value-added services to facilitate camp exchange internationally.
“We are honored to be the Exclusive Sponsor for the National Camp Exchange,” said Octapharma USA President Flemming Nielsen. “It is challenging to manage a successful camp for this community and patients will be the beneficiaries as we bring together as many camp organizers as possible to share expertise and lessons learned.”
“NCE is a natural extension of NACCHO and we are extremely thankful to Octapharma for helping us bring this vision to life," said AHA Chief Executive Officer Cindy Komar. "Together, we are providing camp professionals an experiential opportunity to learn from one another and share best practices that will significantly improve the summer camp experience.”
The National Hemophilia Foundation (NHF) recognizes the benefit of the program.
“Bleeding disorders camps can only benefit from this exchange program,” said Dawn Rotellini, NHF Senior Vice President, Program Development. “Camps are constantly challenged to find volunteers with camp experience and training. They do not have the ability to train their camp volunteers year-round. Due to the lack of financial resources, many camps cannot pay for professionally trained staff, but recognize it’s vital to the success of camp and safety of campers, that their staff is seasoned and experienced. This National Camp Exchange program is one solution to solve a crucial problem for bleeding disorder camps.”
Learn more about the National Camp Exchange Program.
