School head lice policies concerning for Saskatoon parents

A parent in Saskatoon is fed up with the education system and how they deal with head lice.
 
Chris Muir told 650 CKOM’s John Gormley his children have come home from Pleasant Hill Community School with lice eight times throughout the school year.
 
“They’ve got a kid with a full-blown infestation in the classroom who’s not being treated or sent home,” he said.
 
Muir added the adult lice are becoming resistant to the special shampoo his family uses.
 
“We’re at over $400 this year buying crappy anti-lice shampoo,” he said.
 
Saskatoon Public Schools told 650 CKOM the board takes direction from the Ministry of Health on the matter.
 
A fact sheet provided by the ministry states head lice are “common among young children,” and don’t spread disease.
 
“Children with head lice should be treated and can attend school or childcare as usual,” it reads.
 
The ministry recommends treating head lice cases with anti-lice shampoo. Additionally, people are urged to clean brushes, hats and bedding in hot water for at least 15 minutes and then running the dryer on the hottest setting.
 
A spokesperson with Saskatoon Public Schools also noted if students were sent home for lice, they could miss an unnecessary amount of class time.
 
An online petition with more than 200 signatures is asking the ministry of health to reconsider their position on the minuscule bugs.
 
“Lice has now become an epidemic that can’t be stopped, and an expense that parents can’t afford,” wrote Erin Neufeld, the parent who started the petition.
 
“It is the result of parents who are not taking the proper steps to clear their children and continually sending them to school with the infestation.”
 
Neufeld added parents who treat their children to get rid of the bugs “cannot win but for the few who cannot be bothered.”
 
“The parents/caregivers must be held responsible so that the cycle of infestation can be broken.”
 
– With files from 650 CKOM’s Chris Vandenbreekel.