[HMS News] Lice Update

[Brian J. Blake]

Dear Parents, Guardians, and staff members,

The purpose of this message is to update the Hopkinton educational  
community on the status of the lice issue that the community was  
dealing with over the summer.  For those of you who perhaps were not  
aware, the schools were contacted during the later part of the summer  
by several parents indicating that their children had lice.  They  
asked the nurses for some guidance on the treatment and eradication of  
the issue from their homes and also asked that we utilize the school  
email lists to let parents know what was happening.  At that point,  
both Mr. Carozza and Mr. Bessette sent out emails to all parents on  
their email lists indicating that there was a lice issue in the  
community and instructing parents to call the school if they had any  
questions.  In Mid-August, a group of parents expressed concern  
regarding the lice issue and approached the school board to discuss  
the issue.  About 20 parents came to the school board and listened to  
a presentation by two of our school nurses regarding the  
identification, treatment, eradication and prevention of lice  
infestation.  Handouts were available (identical to the ones sent home  
with students the first day of school) and the board listened to the  
public concern.  A "strategic plan" was developed for dealing with the  
issue prior to and during the first days of school this year.  The  
strategic plan is posted on the hopkintonschools.org website under  
News and Information.  A free clinic was advertised and offered to  
parents, students and community members the week before school began  
to check for lice.  During the clinic, over 60 people were checked  
with few cases being reported. All parents in attendance received  
information on the identification, treatment, and eradication of lice  
along with additional information from a variety of sources.     Since  
the opening of school, the nurses have worked to conduct random checks  
of students and classrooms as well as address immediate parent  
concerns.  To date, the nurses have checked over 200 heads and there  
have only been 6 cases of nits found in the schools.  Parents of the  
children in those classrooms were notified accordingly.  There have  
been no cases of live lice in any of the classrooms.  Effected  
children were sent home and treated before returning to school.  At  
this point, the nurses will continue to do random checks for lice as  
time permits.  From a practical standpoint, it is imperative that  
parents continue to periodically check their own children's hair and  
promptly notify the school and any friends who have had close contact  
with the child if lice or nits are found.  I want to take this  
opportunity to thank the many parents who have worked with the school  
system during the opening days of school to ensure a smooth opening  
and transition to a new school year.

As always, if you have any questions, please contact me.

-Brian


Dr. Brian J. Blake
Superintendent of Schools
SAU #66
bblake at hopkintonschools.org