Board asks parents to police head lice

BY JANET GIBSON

Schools in the Rainbow District School Board will excuse children who have lice in their hair as soon as their parents or guardians have been notified, said superintendent Norm Blaseg.

"It's the responsibility of parents to ensure the children are free of lice," he said.

To that end, school staff will let parents know what head lice looks like and what shampoo they can use to get rid of it.

"Head lice is no better or worse than it's ever been," said director of education Jean Hanson. "It pops up every so often in a school."

The public can find excellent information on head lice by going online to healthyontario.com and typing "head lice" in the search engine, said health unit Manager of School Health Promotion Erik Labrosse.

Here are six tips the website provides:

1. Check your child's hair frequently.

2. You'll know if your child has head lice if you see tiny insects in their hair or small, red sores on the scalp or see your child scratching their head. When looking for head lice, check behind the ears, close to the scalp at the back of the neck, and on top of the head. Be on the lookout for their tiny white glistening eggs or little gray hatched ones, which will be firmly attached to the hair shaft, usually close to the scalp. Lice excrement looks like flecks of brown dust.

3. Head lice can be treated with shampoos or cream rinses. Two of the over-the-counter products most commonly used are NIX, a cream rinse, and RNC, a shampoo/conditioner, said Pharmasave pharmacist Joanne Madore.

4. Teach children not to share hats, headphones, combs, brushes, or bicycle helmets and to report any head itching.

5. Soak all brushes and combs in hot water for 5 to 10 minutes or wash them with a pediculicidal shampoo.

6. Many parents are reluctant to report head lice to school officials but it's extremely important to do so to help control its spread.