In an attempt to remove head lice, Lethbridge mom Jenna Smith has combed, washed, and oiled her kids’ heads three times since school began.
“I was pretty grossed out at first” she says, about the first time she noticed the bugs, “but my pharmacist told me it was a common problem.”
Now that it’s happened three times since school began, she says she’s tired of the cost and time it takes, saying it’s “just frustration, honestly, because it’s such a time-consuming process.”
She says she understands elementary age kids will likely experience a lice infestation occasionally but doesn’t understand why schools don’t notify parents.
“We have actually never received a note home or a call home saying they noticed my children had it,” Smith said. “If parents aren’t being notified that there is an issue, how are they supposed to know to check? How do we take preventative measures, if we don’t know what’s happening?”
School District 51 responded with a statement, emphasizing that “head lice are a community-wide problem, as head lice are just as likely to be caught at home or in the community than at school.”
The district’s procedures manual instructs teachers: “DO NOT send alert letters home to other families. This may cause unnecessary anxiety and negative responses from individuals who lack accurate information about head lice.”
Instead, the policy reads: “DO provide the family with information regarding detection, combing, and treatment.”
While some may consider lice a health issue, Alberta Health Services (AHS) says it isn’t a disease, so they aren’t involved.
In a statement to Global News, AHS says it “does not direct policy to follow for management of a head lice concern”, and that “it is up to each school board to determine its own policy related to head lice.”
She’s also been talking to a group of people from the area who have been working on changing this policy since 2015.
Smith says she hopes to speak with Alberta School Council and may create a petition asking for a policy change.
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