94 replies to this topic

[Revolutionist]

Notification is important.
But what about isolation of the carrier, and a requirement for treatment before return to school?

[tessieca]

That is the current policy, but not until the end of the school day since the pediatric docs don't believe that there is a threat if a child is removed at the end of the day and treated before returning to school.

[dancinmomof3]

That is the current policy, but not until the end of the school day since the pediatric docs don't believe that there is a threat if a child is removed at the end of the day and treated before returning to school.

There is not a sound rationale for waiting until the end of the school day imo. I also feel a general notice in the backpack to the parent of the infested child is insufficient. Someone should speak directly with this parent and make sure they are aware and that they understand the treatment protocol.

I discovered my daughters lice myself as with most of the cases I know about at NSE, but if there is a case identified by the school then the school should communicate directly with the parents.

The pediatrician I spoke with about this said the AAP ratioanle was partly because they feel a kid has probably had it for 3 to 4 weeks before diagnosis so waiting another 24 hours or so is no big deal. I disagree with that rationale. Just because it has been going on for 3 to 4 weeks does not mean it's ok to let it go on for 24 more hours. The longer you wait to treat the worse the infestation is and the more likely a person is going to transmit to others. I don't see a benefit in waiting until the end of the school day, but there is a risk.

[dancinmomof3]

I have read the AAP policy statement

http://aappolicy.aap...trics;110/3/638

If anyone wants to read it and discuss I have a couple questions.

Just read the summary if you don't want to read the whole thing.

Look at summary item number 4. If I understand it correctly it says that none of the products that treat head lice kill all the eggs and resistance has been reported with many treatments. But then in item 6 they say that removal of the eggs is not necessary to prevent spread.

If the products don't kill all the eggs, and then you don't remove all the eggs and then those eggs hatch, won't you have live lice again that can crawl from person to person? Why don't they feel it's necessary to remove the eggs?

This is just one of the troubling parts of this AAP policy imo.

[supermom]

my understanding is that it takes a minmum of three treatments with Rit--to fully get rid of lice.

Spaced over the first day--two days later and 2-3 weeks later.

Otherwise--you can't completely kill all the eggs.

I say--the kid infected should stay home until it is gone, period. Just like chicken pox.

[Revolutionist]

That is the current policy, but not until the end of the school day since the pediatric docs don't believe that there is a threat if a child is removed at the end of the day and treated before returning to school.

If by that you mean, the child should sit in the nurse's office until the end of the day (or parent pick-up), I would be happy with that. But not keep them in classroom / send them to afterschool care.

And I am unclear on the what constitutes proof of treatment. If I recall correctly, a child can shower with Johnson's Baby Shampoo, and be let right back into class.

[dancinmomof3]

And I am unclear on the what constitutes proof of treatment. If I recall correctly, a child can shower with Johnson's Baby Shampoo, and be let right back into class.
[/quote]


I believe the policy states that kids are to be checked in the office before returning to class, but that part of the policy was inconsistently enforced this year.

[dancinmomof3]

Tessica earleir asked if the district staff is minimizing the issue. After reflecting on some of the cases that I know about and the efforts parents have made throughout the year asking for help I realized that it is not the policy itself that was the biggest problem. The policy and the ideas it is based on set the tone, but it was the minimizing of the issue and not taking the time to investigate and listen to the concerns of parents that was a bigger problem.

There were parents writing letters to the principal and Syndi's mom who wrote to the superintendent asking for help in a very sensitive situation. Everyone was trying to do this in a respectful way without embarrassing kids or their parents. Some people felt that the principal brushed off their concerns. The superintendent referred Sydni's mom to health services and while health services did send Sydni's mom one email, they never returned her phone calls or listened to her side of the story. Meanwhile more and more cases of lice occured especially in the 1st grade. It's been a problem during the entire school year. Many of the cases I don't know how they got it or who the kids are, but a few people whose parents confided in me are certain their children got it at school.

So while I would like the policy to change, I hope that there will be better communication all around. Regardless of the school policy we need to work together when there are problems like this in school. I feel like that is happening now to some extent and I am hopeful that will continue.

I now plan to look at each case that I know about and think about what exactly could have been done to either prevent or minimize that case. I will also ask myself would it have made a difference if the district policy had been different and if so how?

One of the ways the district is minimzing the situation now is by saying that the problem only existed at NSE and that it wasn't really that bad. Maybe that is true maybe not. It seems we are the only school right now that has parents complaining about it. Part of the reason I started this thread was to see if there are parents on this forum from other schools who have similar concerns. I haven't heard from any so far. I will say that what happened to us at NSE can easily happen at another school and I think when I share the case stories that I know about with the board and admin that will be clear. It can happen at another school too. I hope there will be lessons learned that will prevent something similar happening at another school in our district.

Sometimes lice is a problem in school, but it didn't have to be as bad as it was this year at NSE.

[bordercolliefan]

One of the ways the district is minimzing the situation now is by saying that the problem only existed at NSE and that it wasn't really that bad.

I think this is a very short-sighted perspective. The issue is not how many schools had lice this year. The issue is, once lice are introduced at a school (which could happen at any school), what procedures can be followed to ensure that the smallest possible number of children is affected, as opposed to letting it mushroom into a huge epidemic (which seems to be what happened at NSE this year).

By the way, can you give us your total estimate of children affected? Are we talking dozens of kids?

[dancinmomof3]

I know of 26 cases that I can back up with sources. 21 of those were in first grade classrooms. There are more that are repeated rumors but did not meet my criteria for inclusion in the count. There are also a couple siblings and at least one parent who got it but are not included in the 26 number because they are not students at NSE. I did not add in recurring or repeat cases. I know 2 kids in the same class who had it more than once for sure and I know of 2 others who I am pretty sure had it more than once or had persistent cases.

[asbestoshills]

I think the school should have to pay for the lice shampoo for everyone because more than likely the carriers of the lice aren't using the remedy at all or not treating enough. Not to mention, $200 is a heck of a lot of dough to pay for someone else's dirty children. It disgusts me to think that the children would be allowed to stay the entire day of class....What's wrong with this country???? Mandatory lice checks should be done by the school nurse once one child gets it.....As the economy gets worse, there probably will be more cases of lice...Maybe the family of the infected aren't washing their kids clothes etc........Most of the miniorities in FOlsom are East Indian and Asian who have extended families that don't necessarily have their shots...Also, last time I checked ALL students have to be vaccinated to attend school.....However, what about all of the family from out of this country that visit their relatives...Who knows what they bring in.......I think there should be a law that all people visiting this country show their vaccines, have a lice check and TB xray at their own cost done at the airport so we know they aren't forged records....Just don't allow anyone here without their shots and that will cut down a lot of the TB cases especially....Also, there are a lot of Ukraines in the Rancho Cordova schools that have been allowed to attend classes before they had their shot record verified....I have a friend that was a teacher and she caught some disease from one of the students..Can't remember if it was whooping cough, but something like that.....GROSS!

[Parizienne]

Does anyone know what the Coloma people did about this? Sundahl was there the last three days of school. My guess is that it's possible those kids could have also been exposed?


In my last district, the classroom next to mine had cases of lice. It was the only time I'd heard of any such case. It freaked me out to the point that my head was tickling and itching for no reason! I went and bought some lice shampoo just in case. We never got it, but even being near it was horrible!

Pari.

Dancinmom,

I don't know if the other 4th grade parents were notified that their kids had been exposed while on the Coloma trip.

[bordercolliefan]

Ok, now I think we're bordering on hysteria.

Lice can only live a short time (less than 24 hours) away from a human head. So Parizienne, it makes no difference that Sundahl was at Coloma weeks or months after Natoma Station was there. The carriers -- and the lice -- would have been long gone.

Asbestos, we're not talking about a threat like tuberculosis. Lice are icky, yes, but they're not life-threatening and I don't think they have anything to do with "immigrants" or "minorities," as your post suggests. Lice have occurred in lots of middle and upper class schools. It's mostly just bad luck -- kids get exposed (could be anywhere-- movie theatre, or whatever) and then unknowingly carry it into school. I know some of the kids in our school who got it and believe me, they all come from nice, educated, clean -- and yes, American -- families. Your reference to "someone else's dirty children" seems very mean-spirited to me.

I totally support Dancinmom's constructive efforts to make sure we have the very best policy and procedures. But demonizing the children who suffered from this is not constructive.

[Parizienne]

I'm not hysterical. I am curious, though. Hard to tell on a blog, I know.

It wasn't weeks later. It was days later, if I have my dates right for NSE.
Sundahl's trip started May 27 and ended May 29. It doesn't appear my child has any nits, but I was still curious whether Coloma had done anything between the two visits since it was determined the lice were transmitted at the NSE field trip.


And I agree with your assessment about lice infestations crossing class and culture boundaries. It's not a question of cleanliness, race, money or culture. It just happens.


Pari.

Ok, now I think we're bordering on hysteria.

Lice can only live a short time (less than 24 hours) away from a human head. So Parizienne, it makes no difference that Sundahl was at Coloma weeks or months after Natoma Station was there. The carriers -- and the lice -- would have been long gone.

Asbestos, we're not talking about a threat like tuberculosis. Lice are icky, yes, but they're not life-threatening and I don't think they have anything to do with "immigrants" or "minorities," as your post suggests. Lice have occurred in lots of middle and upper class schools. It's mostly just bad luck -- kids get exposed (could be anywhere-- movie theatre, or whatever) and then unknowingly carry it into school. I know some of the kids in our school who got it and believe me, they all come from nice, educated, clean -- and yes, American -- families. Your reference to "someone else's dirty children" seems very mean-spirited to me.

I totally support Dancinmom's constructive efforts to make sure we have the very best policy and procedures. But demonizing the children who suffered from this is not constructive.

[asbestoshills]

I'm not hysterical. I am curious, though. Hard to tell on a blog, I know.

It wasn't weeks later. It was days later, if I have my dates right for NSE.
Sundahl's trip started May 27 and ended May 29. It doesn't appear my child has any nits, but I was still curious whether Coloma had done anything between the two visits since it was determined the lice were transmitted at the NSE field trip.
And I agree with your assessment about lice infestations crossing class and culture boundaries. It's not a question of cleanliness, race, money or culture. It just happens.
Pari.

Lice doesn't just happen.....It begins in mostly hot climates....India, South America, Mexico and our Southern States and Ca. all have warm climates......However, the socio-economic implications are this.....if you can't afford delouse medication, your child will probably end up with a repeat infestation and spread it around the school...Also, children who share their beds with siblings transmit it back and forth etc.....LICE actually like clean heads....I made the point that mostly East Indian children attend Folsom schools because the other poster mentioned Mexicans and as usual associated them with diseases.....Most of the Mexicans in Folsom, my family inc. are citizens.....Also, most East Indian girls have long dark CLEAN hair, attributes lice are likely to infect......Since we were talking about infestations and disease I think it was alright to mention a more significant issue....Vaccinations....ALL children and adults should have them and shame on you if don't.....