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Click Here to see a list of previous articles September
is National Lice Prevention Month!
"Because it's not about lice, it's about kids" Many attribute the fall or back-to-school as the time of year when head lice are most prevalent. The truth of the matter is that this is merely the time of year when kids are again congregating in groups, people are made more aware and more screenings for lice are likely to occur as well as reports of infestations. Head lice represent a non-reportable disease and good incidence data is hard to come by. On the other hand, the National Pediculosis Association receives requests for help with head lice from people all over the world, 12 months a year, 24/7. As sales of the pesticide treatments continue to decline (15% in the last year), the visitors to www.headlice.org continue to increase, breaking new records (more than 3,000 unique visitors a day). We believe this is an indication that better informed parents are making safer choices and refusing to purchase potentially harmful products or repurchase products they have found ineffective. The NPA appreciates and thanks School Health Corporation and the school nurses it serves around the country for providing parents with NPA information and the LiceMeister comb to make screening and early detection a routine event rather than a disruption. Just as early intervention is emphasized in schools for vision, scoliosis, and hearing, the same wellness opportunities apply to head lice when communities are informed before outbreaks occur. Manual methods of ending infestations with early detection go a long way not only to resolve infestations but also to avoid unnecessary and potentially harmful pesticide treatment exposures to children and their families. John Smithkey, RN, BSN says it best. "Each year brings new health issues, risks and challenges to the school nurse. My experience has been that any opportunity to be proactive (such as with a screening program) benefits everyone concerned especially the kids as opposed to the alternative which is to try to manage head lice with crisis intervention." We invite school nurses;
school administrators and childcare providers to join the NPA's All Out
Comb Out which emphasizes the importance of helping parents send their
children to school and child care lice and nit free and ready to learn.
This September marks the 19th Annual Head Lice Prevention Campaign. Your
participation can be as simple as posting a notice in your local paper
or school website or distributing educational resources within your community.
Materials are available to download at www.headlice.org.
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