Health Guidelines

Girl Scouts of Western Washington continues to review these guidelines and uses guidance from the CDC and Washington State to inform our policies.

Participant Health Screening

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All participants are required to complete a health self-assessment prior to in-person programming. See "Are You Girl Scout Ready?" for more details.
Program host(s) and/or troop leadership should keep a record of attendance for any in-person programming being offered for approximately three months.
If anyone within your household is sick, you should not attend in-person programming.

Attendance roster example can be found here.

Safety, Cleaning, First Aid Protocol

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Prevention Steps for Respiratory Illnesses | CDC

Cleaning guidance | CDC
All in-person programming must have the following First Aid/PPE equipment on site:
- First aid supplies should include the following illness prevention items: hand sanitizer (at least 60% alcohol), tissues, disposable facemasks, two disposable adult medical gowns, trash bags, disposable gloves, and cleaning disinfectant.
- Disposable or no-contact thermometers may be added to supplies if available and not cost-prohibitive.

Are You Girl Scout Ready? toggle arrow

All youth, adult, and host participants are required to complete a Girl Scout Ready health assessment prior to in-person programming. You will be asked by program leadership if you’ve completed your Girl Scout Ready health assessment upon sign-in.

In the last 72 hours, have you/your Girl Scout experienced ANY of the following new symptoms that cannot be attributed to another health condition or specific activity such as physical exercise?

Fever? Yes/No 
Cough? Yes/No 
Shortness of breath? Yes/No 
Fatigue? Yes/No 
Muscle Aches? Yes/No 
Sore Throat? Yes/No
Any other flu-like symptoms, such as gastrointestinal upset or headaches? Yes/No 
New loss of taste or smell? Yes/No 
A temperature over 100°F? Yes/No

If you answered yes to any of the above health check questions, and the symptoms cannot be attributed to another health condition or specific activity (such as physical exercise), please stay home or follow up with a medical provider.

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Troops and groups are allowed to set safety guidelines that are stricter than those set by Girl Scouts of Western Washington Safety Guidelines. A common safety requirement that is approved would be:

Requiring everyone (youth and adults) to be masked even when participating in outdoor activities.

If your troop or group wants to require additional guidelines outside of these common requirements, please reach out to Customer Care for final approval.

Food, Dining, and Snacks

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Please follow food safety best practices. If two or more individuals working in the kitchen get sick, it must be reported to the Health Department.

What to Do When Someone Gets Sick

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If a volunteer, program host, and/or participant is exhibiting symptoms of illness that cannot be attributed to another health condition or specific activity, they are required to leave the program site immediately. If unable to leave immediately, the following protocols should be followed:

Agreements should be made in advance with caregivers regarding how program hosts will manage symptomatic participants and possible exposure procedures.
Symptomatic participants should be isolated in a designated isolation area that is removed from but within eyesight and earshot of the program area to maintain the required youth to adult ratio.
If the symptomatic participant is unable to leave of their own accord or a guardian cannot be reached, their emergency contact will be notified. They will remain in the isolation area until their transportation arrives. If unable to reach the emergency contact or arrange for transportation, emergency services (9-1-1) should be called.
It is required that the caregiver should make every accommodation to pick up their child immediately if their child is exhibiting symptoms of illness. A program host or volunteer should stay with the symptomatic individual until the caregiver has arrived and should always wear a face mask/covering. It is advised to stay six feet away unless the participant needs medical attention. If medical attention is required, the volunteer should wear gloves and a mask to provide care and contact 9-1-1 if a participant is experiencing signs of distress or difficulty breathing.
Whenever possible, the adult-to-youth ratio should be maintained. However, when navigating emergency health and safety situations, this ratio can be temporarily waived.
The symptomatic individual should wear a face mask/covering if able.
No one should enter the isolation area except for the assigned program host/volunteer and caregiver.
Follow sanitation procedures to clean any areas that the symptomatic individual may have had contact with and notify all people who were in the area that a symptomatic individual had access to. See the CDC’s website for more on cleaning and disinfecting community facilities.
All caregivers should be made aware of the isolation incident upon pick-up.
Program host or troop leadership should complete and submit an Incident Report Form to Girl Scouts of Western Washington.
Program updates, delays, and/or cancellation notices will be sent out within 48 hours of the incident.

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Participants are considered sick if they have a sustained fever of at least 100 degrees for more than one hour and/or are experiencing symptoms that prevent them from safely and comfortably participating in the scheduled activities (see Girl Scout Ready assessment for examples).

When it is one or two individuals who are sick, those individuals should be sent home.
When one troop or group has three or more individuals who are sick and presenting with related symptoms, that entire troop/group should be sent home.
When a unit (specific to camp) has five or more individuals who are sick and presenting with related symptoms, that entire unit should be sent home
When 10% or eight individuals (whichever is less) across a program get sick with related symptoms, the entire program should be sent home.
Regardless of who is sent home, other programs, units, or groups at the event who interacted with the sick participant should be informed that someone was sent home sick.

Reporting Incidents of Illness

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In the event of hospitalization, outbreak, or loss of life, promptly contact a member of Girl Scouts of Western Washington's customer care team at 800-541-9852 or customercare@girlscoutsww.org, or the after-hours emergency line (800) 303-9963, if applicable.

An Incident Report should be filled out by troop leadership or program host. They should also ensure that all participants are notified of the exposure.

Overnight Trips and Travel

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Girl Scouts of Western Washington Travel Disclaimer: At any time, approvals for travel can be rescinded due to national or world health concerns. Make sure that you research your destinations and work with vendors/locations that have flexible cancellation policies. Girl Scouts of Western Washington will not be responsible or held liable for travel refunds, incurred fees and/or trip cancellations costs.

COVID-19 Guidance

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Preventing the Spread of Respiratory Viruses

What to do when you are sick | CDC

Finances, travel extensions, and other travel details can be found on the travel page.

Questions or Concerns?

Have questions about the Health Guidelines? Feel free to contact us using the form below or call 1(800) 541-9852.