An itchy situation

Families react to public school board revision to head lice policy

They make you itch, even if they’re not on your head. And when they are, they’re everywhere. Despite the stigma that surrounds the little pests, a head lice infestation, known as pediculosis, is not worth panicking over, according to the Canadian Paediatric Society (CPS).

In 2008, the CPS updated their position on pediculosis, stating the infestations are not a health hazard, but rather a social issue. There is no risk of secondary infections or health issues, and lice are easy enough to manage that the nonit policies in some school boards are unnecessary.

These policies, which bar children who are found to have nits or live lice and nymphs, are slowly fading from school board policies, replaced by more lax policies that allow children to continue to be in school while the school and the community work to stay on top of outbreaks.

After changing the policy in November, the Hastings Prince Edward District School Board followed suite this week, announcing an updated policy that would allow children with head lice to continue in school. The HPEDSB previously stated any child with nits or head lice must stay home until an inspection—performed by school volunteers— proved no more signs of an infestation.

Parents of students at CML Snider school were told, in the school’s January newsletter, that “the bottom line is that we cannot exclude students for health issues that medical experts don’t support.”

But parents aren’t buying it.

Cassandra Tyers, who sits on CML’s student council, says that although it isn’t a health hazard, removing the policy will potentially increase outbreaks.

“I understand it in theory,” says Tyers, “but the issue is it could spiral. If there’s no boost to get your child taken care of—and that’s not an economic choice, always—it’s stuffies, it’s bedding, it’s carpeting. It’s huge… if one family doesn’t necessarily deal with it effectively, and there’s no reward to deal with it effectively, then other families could be affected by their choices.”

Tyers says at their last meeting, the council was informed of the new policies. Parents expressed concerns that the infestation could be perpetuated. Tyers says reactions varied from concerned to frustrated to angry. Not one parent was in favour of the new policy.

Tyers says there was also concern that children from low-income families would have a harder time getting rid of infestation. Although the Storehouse food bank hasn’t received any requests for help with lice shampoo or other support, Tyers says the treatment can get expensive.

“It’s time, labour, but then there’s costs occurred. How much does it cost to do one load of laundry? If this happens in my home… I’m doing six loads of laundry just on bedding, plus all of the clothes they’ve come in contact with. It’s winter, so all of their winter clothes, their hats, their mitts, their coats, backpacks need to be addressed.”

Kerry Donnell, communications officer for the HPEDSB, says that the board’s research brought them to the conclusion that there was no reason for the old policy, and that it was unnecessarily stigmatizing.

“All students have the right to an education. At HPEDSB, our core business is to serve students,” says Donnell. “Research says that pediculosis screening can be a targeted, stigmatizing activity, especially when children are sent home. That’s why when pediculosis screening is being done, the first priority must be to respect the child’s right to privacy, dignity and cultural sensitivity.”

Donnell points to charities like the Hastings and Prince Edward Learning Foundation’s Student Emergency Fund for help with low-income households who need to treat pediculosis outbreaks.

“I don’t think these children need to be punished,” says Tyers. “I think there can be different ways. If my child goes to school in the morning with head lice, fine, you don’t pull them out for the rest of the day, but you do look at making sure that they’re treated before they come back in to the classroom. They can have the common cold. It doesn’t need to be addressed that, you know, Cassandra can’t go to school because she has lice. Anybody can get head lice.

“The worst part of it is I don’t think it’s cleaned up and treated effectively, and that’s how it’s recurring.”