Yes another lice question-Help with a Lice policy

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I know we all get sick of hearing about these creepy crawlies but they are a thorn in my side. I have done nothing but check heads since returning from break. I could care less about head lice. I know thats horrible but its just so stupid. And I have school aged children but I also keep a check on their heads, weve had it before and got rid of it! So I know its just one of those things kids can get. But the staff think its MY JOB to be the lice finder and do nothing to help me. And its the same ole kids that always have it. They are also starting to single out kids and Im afraid thats gonna cause some issues with parents. I wouldnt want my kids being the once constantly getting checked while the rest of the class wasnt.

My question is about my districts lice policy. We have always had a no live bug policy. You could have nits but were sent home with bugs. I always sent a note home with nits just to have the parents recheck. But another school (the one I used to work at) in our district has literally went over the policy and found where it states "student will be sent home with live lice or evidence of lice" i.e. nits. So now they are wanting us to send home everyone with nits. I will literally have so students in this school! They wont listen to recommendations from anywhere saying "do not send home at all" or anything like that cause the nurses have tried explaining the new guidelines.

Anyone that could be of any assistance I would greatly appreciate it.

Does your school do periodic whole class lice checks? If so does each homeroom teacher do them or do you do them?

What is your schools policy?

Does anything help this problem?

I really like school nursing and I love the schedule. But one of the main reasons I left the old school and took a different job was I was sick of dealing with lice! Ive been at this school since Oct. and I feel like Im drowning in them again. I can not eradicate them or I would!

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I just read this great article. These facts will help prove your stance. Good luck!

https://www.pediatricnursing.net/ce/2016/article4005226235.pdf

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Specializes in School Nurse, Pediatrics, Surgical.

I know it is nasty to think of bugs in a person's hair. I do, really... but this is a topic that is more based on people's "fear" of getting the bugs rather than what is best practices. Check with your health department use information to help back you! Use the CDC, use the Harvard school of medicine, use AAP. I hardly ever deal with lice issues anymore. Thankfully, at one of my campuses I had parents calling me asking me to do head checks etc. It stopped after I referenced literature and firmly, but professionally said I was not going to be doing class room checks. I went to admin. I presented them with information from those sources typed above. Good luck to you, I hope you have a good outcome with this and educating your peers!

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We have the no nit no lice policy, entire class and bus checks connected with a reported case. Nurse only does the checks...

Here is my advice:

"student will be sent home with live lice or evidence of lice i.e. nits."= evidence of lice is only lice. The example of nits May only be true if nits are found 1/4" from the scalp. If further from scalp no medical evidence to prove this would be a live egg. Medical evidence proves a high false accuracy to Head checks so therefore I for one only report active live lice cases and only screen for live lice, if you are not looking for nits you will not find them. I do believe in sending Home letters and encouraging frequent comb throughs by parents as we can only quickly screen not give a hair by hair examinations. Parents and teachers can be a huge challenge, I educate the best I can against over treatment and encourage parents to speak to the pediatrician about appropriate treatment therefore taking myself out of the anger and blame equation. Although medical evidence proves otherwise, these screenings are just part of the job and I do them with a smile and an itch. Good luck

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Specializes in School Nurse, past Med Surge.
I just read this great article. These facts will help prove your stance. Good luck!

https://www.pediatricnursing.net/ce/2016/article4005226235.pdf

This is my go-to for educating people about lice! So much great evidence based information.

We do not do whole class/school checks, haven't for years. We kind of feel like we're not going to go looking for it...don't ask, don't tell type thing. Our policy is that if live lice are found the parent will be contacted and asked to come pick up the student. Parent is expected to treat and bring the student to the nurse to check before being allowed back to school the next day. If a parent can't come right away, I don't sweat it. The kid had lice in the classroom before they came to me, it's no biggie if they go back up with it. You just have to keep presenting evidence based information. Go up the chain of command. Good luck.

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Specializes in Med-surg, school nursing..

If your district policy is to not send home for nits, but your admin is trying to make you, I would suggest doing what I did when that happened here... Tell admin that you will not go against district policy (I had my nursing supervisors support) and if they want to send the child home then they will have to make the call. I would also let them know that going against district policy could open them up to big problems if the parent feels their child is being discriminated against.

As far as your school having so many cases of lice. That stinks. Is this a low income school? Could it be that parents don't have the resources to properly treat? If this is the case maybe you could partner with your family resource person to come up with solutions.

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Specializes in School Nurse, past Med Surge.

Wait... Why on earth does one school in the same district have a different policy?

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Yes we are a low income school system for the most part. We are in Mississippi so that should speak for itself. haha We dont have nursing supervisors just two RNs covering 8 different schools which is around 3000 students! It isnt a different policy its just that the original policy was looked at by one particular school and the way it is worded with the "any evidence of lice" they take it to mean nits too. I see so much discrimination in this way of doing it. I have a dont ask dont tell policy with lice honestly. But we are very backward in the way of thinking here. I know spot test are not accurate but we have kids that have had lice before and no one ever takes the time to comb their nits out and so they are visible! So it never fails I get the call to come check "because the teacher or another student saw something in their hair". I cant make them understand that this is going to end up in either a bullying issue or angry parents either way. Thanks for the help. Unfortunately I have tried everything mentioned so I guess I cant make things change around here. So frustrating!

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