Lice at camp

Specialties Camp

Published

Specializes in Emergency room, med/surg, UR/CSR.

Just have a question. I had to go get my son from the very expensive camp he went to a day and a half early because the found lice in his hair. Supposedly they kept him up until three in the morning the night before washing his hair three times with Rid. Their reason for sending him home was that two other boys in the cabin came up with the lice which they also treated, but they didn't send these boys home because they didn't have as bad a case. As camp nurses, what is your policy on finding lice on kids?

Thanks,

Pam

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Hopefully, it is so infrequent, that it is handled on a case by case basis.

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Specializes in Theatre.

Did your son have nits as well as the lice. Perhpas the other boys only had lice without evidence of the nits. Whatever the case lice can be very difficult to get rid of. Check your son's hair every day for the next fortnight (or for a fortnight after the last live louse was seen). A problem could be that you do not know where he got the lice from so there is the chance of reinfection. Don't stress about it though. Head lice are a universal problem and are becoming increasingly resistant to treatment. You just need to be vigilent.

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Specializes in Family.
Just have a question. I had to go get my son from the very expensive camp he went to a day and a half early because the found lice in his hair. Supposedly they kept him up until three in the morning the night before washing his hair three times with Rid. Their reason for sending him home was that two other boys in the cabin came up with the lice which they also treated, but they didn't send these boys home because they didn't have as bad a case. As camp nurses, what is your policy on finding lice on kids?

Thanks,

Pam

I'm not a camp nurse, but I think 3 applications of RID are way too much. Boys in this area who get lice usually get their heads shaved.

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here's a non-toxic method using cetaphil

http://nuvoforheadlice.com/

Check it out. 3 doses of RID does sound excessive.

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

Kids stayed in camp as already exposed to bunk mates. Only 1 1/2days in camp, no way others came down with head lice that fast from your child.

I'd administer Kwell/Rid per pediatrician order (Peds Dr owned camp :D) in the evening, NEVER would I keep kids up till 3AM. Only one treatment usually need; three in one night excessive; however wonder if it wasn't just rinsing out again. Plastic cap overnight, and comb out in AM daily till clean head.....OR with parents permission, buzz cut done. Camp counselors did cabin cleaning.

Long girls hair might get reapplication 1-x times over 2 week period.

WORST problem was at grade school:mother with FOUR children with head lice, got called every name in the book as hairdresser insisted just bad dander. Insisted on doctors note and clearance with principal baking me up. Boy did this Mom eat crow next day apologizing. Took 1 week till all cleared to return to school. Lots of education provided to Mom and support its not due to poor housekeeping but comb/brush sharing along with lying in bed watching TV together.

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We just had this problem at my camp. We found three girls with lice on incoming camper day. One girl was not too bad, but the other two were sisters and were absolutely loaded. All three girls said their moms had treated them and thought they were clear. I was willing to treat the first one, but then when the other two came up, I knew it was too much. Perhaps they felt the same way at your camp. I simply did not have the time that is needed to do a thorough job. We called the parents and they begged us to take care of it. Fortunately the directors were able to find someone who could spend the SEVEN hours it took to treat all three of them. I don't know what they paid her, but I hope it was a lot. We rechecked all three of them after 7 days and again 3 days later and all were clear. Thank God. They were nice girls who would have had to go home.

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Specializes in Critical Care.

So, I got to camp last sat. . .

I had read this thread and KNEW it was gonna jinx me. . .

One of the first kids through hands me a bottle of scalp medicine and says, "I just had lice three days ago and this medicine is for my head."

Oh great.

Find the counselor: her bed is already made out and in the cabin mix. This is a 9 yr old.

Super.

Call mom with the intent to say: "YOU SENT THIS CHILD TO CAMP?!"

Now, the rest of the story:

Girl had lice a MONTH ago, checked twice by pediatrician since then and 'daily' by mom. Girl is 'freaked' about it. The scalp medicine was ordered because the several treatments left the girl a little red on the scalp and much traumatized by the thought.

Mom says, "The doc said the medicine is probably un-necessary at this point, but it convinces the girl she is 'treating' her hair to keep it from coming back."

Whew.

For a second there, I just KNEW you guys had jinxed me.

~faith,

Timothy.

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Specializes in med/surg/tele/neuro/rehab/corrections.

Keeping a child up until 3am and treating him 3x for lice is abusive and disrespectful to that child. Sounds like the lice treatment probably didn't kill the lice the first time because the lice were resistant to it. In that case another application of a different product is proper, but not the same stuff over and over.

I would have given those camp counselors a piece of my mind!

I am a former hairdresser and former pre-school teacher so I know all about lice LOL Any hairdresser should know the difference between lice and dandruff! Heck, anyone with good eyes can see what a bug looks like! They can be white, grey or brown. They can match the color of your child's hair exactly.

The most important thing to remember is that it is not a crime to get lice, it's just a crime to not get rid of it :)

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I remember getting headlice in school and being humiliated. I will never forget it, I was in second grade and my teacher took me to the front of the room and made me apologize to the class for causing them to all be checked for lice. I cried for days. Please remember to be compassionate and protect the privacy of these poor kids! Noone should be treated the way I was.

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Specializes in med/surg/tele/neuro/rehab/corrections.
I remember getting headlice in school and being humiliated. I will never forget it, I was in second grade and my teacher took me to the front of the room and made me apologize to the class for causing them to all be checked for lice. I cried for days. Please remember to be compassionate and protect the privacy of these poor kids! Noone should be treated the way I was.

Awwww. :o

What a jerk that teacher was! :angryfire

In my child development classes we learned how to handle a child with headlice and how to break it gently to the parent and act like it's no big deal so no one is embarrassed.

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Specializes in floor to ICU.
I remember getting headlice in school and being humiliated. I will never forget it, I was in second grade and my teacher took me to the front of the room and made me apologize to the class for causing them to all be checked for lice. I cried for days. Please remember to be compassionate and protect the privacy of these poor kids! Noone should be treated the way I was.

terrible teacher! I recall waiting my turn (sweating bullets) while the PE teachers used a pencil to check everyones hair. It is bad enough to be singled out but to be made to apologize...

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