Lice

From Kidshealth.org – “Lice aren’t dangerous and they don’t spread disease, but they are contagious and downright annoying.”

Marcy Open staff received an email today from our school nurse, Andrea Seebach. 

I’ve copied the most pertinent information to pass along to families/care givers;

This is taken from Hennepin County Epidemiology Update letter:

 

Hennepin County recommends that a child with head lice be

excluded from childcare, school, and activities until their first

head lice treatment is completed and no live lice are seen. Nits

are not considered live lice. While “head checks” in schools, or

mass screenings of classrooms or entire schools for head lice,

and “no nit” policies are used by some schools, they are not

recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics6 or the

National Association of School Nurses9 and have not been

shown to be cost effective or a particularly useful prevention

strategy. Studies have shown that children with head lice are no

more infectious on the day of diagnosis than they had been prior

to the discovery of an infestation.10 This supports the practice

that students do not need to immediately be sent home when a

head lice infestation is noted. Rather the child’s parent/guardian

should be notified of the infestation and the child dismissed at the

end of the school day. The child should be advised to avoid

head-to-head contact with other students on the day of

diagnosis.

A more practical and effective approach to head lice prevention

in schools is to provide informational materials to parents to

educate themselves and their children and to recommend that

parents periodically check their child’s head for lice.11,12

 

Andrea Seebach, Licensed School Nurse, Minneapolis Public Schools

      Anishinabe and Sullivan Schools, Mon, Wed, Thurs, 612-668-4990

      Marcy Open School, Tues and Friday, 612-668-1045