Scabies!

Specialties School

Published

Specializes in school/military/OR/home health.

I had a parent call me this morning to let me know her child has scabies and she just knows she got it at school. She knows this because no one else in the family has it, and they aren't a touchy feely family. So the prolonged, skin-to-skin contact necessary to transmit scabies has to have happened at school.

What even? She didn't tell me what she wanted me to do about it, and I explained that I can't go around checking everyone for scabies. Not even sure she wanted me to do that.

So my question is, how do you all handle scabies? This is also eerily similar to some recent lice cases (even though the same kids get lice over and over, clearly I am not doing my job to prevent outbreaks, according to these same parents on Facebook).

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Specializes in Pediatrics Retired.

In Texas kids are excluded from school for scabies until treatment has begun. So my first question to this parent would be who made the diagnosis? Next would be what treatment has taken place? Sending kids home for suspicion of scabies puts a school nurse in a difficult position. We "can't" diagnose anything but only identify signs of various abnormalities. Scabies rashes present all over the map. Sending a kid home for "pinkeye" sometimes results with us having egg on our face and complaints of a doctor visit for nothing, etc. I am very careful when I send a kid home for suspected bacterial conjunctivitis...and scabies. So when I run across this at school I emphasize the importance parental/pediatrician collaboration, education, treatment, and prevention. I have never sent a letter home about scabies cases at school. Good luck!!

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Scabies incubation period is 2-6 weeks. There is NO WAY to tell where it originated from.

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Scabies incubation period is 2-6 weeks. There is NO WAY to tell where it originated from.

But everything undesirable must come from the school, specifically the irresponsible school nurse who "let this happen"! :cheeky:

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Specializes in school/military/OR/home health.
Scabies incubation period is 2-6 weeks. There is NO WAY to tell where it originated from.

Which is what I tried to tell mom but...you can guess how that conversation went. She called immediately after the doctor's visit, I had never even seen the child. I am pretty careful about "diagnosing" kids. Can't say how many times I've had angry parents call because I thought maybe it was one thing and MD said it was another. I usually say "it looks like "xyz" but I am not a doctor so I would take them to a doctor to get checked out".

I think she was just calling to pretty much tell me I am a terribly irresponsible nurse who allowed children to get an infectious disease. I just wanted to check to see if that is the case, and other nurses do something more for scabies. :(

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Specializes in IMC, school nursing.

I frequently call in students to introduce lice and scabies in my irresponsibility. I also constantly monitor classrooms and common areas for parasites. Parents are hilarious.

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Specializes in school/military/OR/home health.
I frequently call in students to introduce lice and scabies in my irresponsibility. I also constantly monitor classrooms and common areas for parasites. Parents are hilarious.

LOL. That's what I told my hubby--I walk the halls with vials of diseases and parasites and sprinkle them on classroom surfaces to keep myself in a job. Like Tinkerbell, except instead of fairy dust I sprinkle streptococcus.

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Like Tinkerbell, except instead of fairy dust I sprinkle streptococcus.

I choked on my coffee! Hahahahaha

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Scabies is reportable to the DOH, Nurses.

Call your local DOH and follow their recommendation if there is no protocol at school.

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Specializes in School Nurse. Having conversations with littles..

In Missouri: kids are excluded from school until after treatment has been completed.

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Scabies is not reportable here in FL. They can return as soon as they have had a treatment.

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Specializes in school/military/OR/home health.

It isn't in my state. Parents are always on me to communicate what is happening in the school and so last year I sent a letter notifying them of a few flu cases...our DPH got very angry and I was told, in no uncertain terms, that I do not ever send a letter home to parents about any illness unless they (DPH) tell me to. I even printed out a list of what I have to call DPH about.

So my newsletters pretty much say "it's flu season, wash your hands". And you know what? The parents are still unhappy.

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