Head Lice Protocol In The Schools

HEAD LICE PROTOCOL IN THE SCHOOLS Step I . When there is a report of head lice to the school, the school nurse or a designated school staff member will examine the referred child and their siblings. Step II. The school nurse will examine the classmates of the student known to have head liceas soon as is reasonable after the report is made to her. This may be the next school day after the report was made due to the fact that school nurses cover more than one school site. Step III. If an additional child among classmates is found to have head lice, the school nurse will recommend to the school principal that the “Lice Information Letter” be sent home to the parents of children in that classroom where the lice was found. The school nurse and the principal may decide to send the letter home to the parents of all students within the school if there is a widespread outbreak of head lice. Sending home the information letter to parents encourages parents to check their own students and early treatment will help to decrease the further spread of head lice in the school setting. Step IV. The school nurse will follow up with each case of head lice found in the school to be sure parents understand how to treat their student, their family, and their home environment. Students found to have live head lice will be sent home for treatment. They may return to school after treatment and an effort has been made to remove “nits” or eggs of head lice from the student’s hair. The school nurse will reexamine each student’s head as necessary and as possible to check for proper treatment and any reoccurrence of head lice. It is not necessary to keep students out of school if their hair shows old, dead “nits” (which will appear ½ inch or more away from the scalp) but parents will be encouraged to continue their efforts to remove the nits.

Utah County Health Dept. 151 S. University Ave. Suite 1610 Provo, Utah 84601

Margie Golden, Bureau Director of School Nursing 801-851-7015 12/2/08