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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Employee With Head Lice
mary e 05:57 PM 01-04-2009
My daughter works at a day care center/preschool in New York state. There was an outbreak of head lice and she was infested. Employees as well as children who have nits are sent home at once. My daughter has used Rid shampoo on several occasions and I have meticulously combed her hair to remove nits, but she keeps getting sent home by a supervisor who says she still has nits. She has very thick, long hair and it's very time consuming to comb through it all, but I have done it for her a couple of times. She even dyed her hair because she heard that that kills the lice.

This is not only frustrating and time consuming. It's also a major financial problem, as the day care center doesn't pay her on days when they send her home. I can't believe this is legal.

Can anyone give me guidance on what I might do to help her with this situation? She has lost a week's worth of pay so far.

Mary
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msue1301 11:44 AM 01-19-2009
I just happened to see this and would like to respond. I can understand your frustration with those little bugs; I've had to deal with them many times in my day care home. I have had kids that seem to keep getting them over and over.

Currently though, I have a family that has 3 girls that have had them for the past 3 years! My daughter has gotten lice from the day care kids twice and both times I got rid of them entirely with homeopathic or all-natural products. And using olive oil. The other thing is using a very fine toothed nit comb. You may need a magnifier to be able to see all of the nits--but if you don't remove ALL of them, they will hatch and start the cycle all over again!!

There are some excellent websites devoted to helping people get rid of these pests. The reason that family still has the lice is that the mom doesn't get rid of all the nits. And she's not doing all the girls at the same time. I even went through their hair twice! But now I just put their hair in pony tails and put a bandana over their heads every day they are here because I know she hasn't gotten rid of them all.

If the school would insist they can't be there unless the lice are gone, then they would have to get rid of them! I've got parents that would leave if their child got them! I don't want my daughter to have them. So the only way to deal with these things is to be very thorough. Look up natural head lice removal and you will find plenty of links that will help you.

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Unregistered 05:08 PM 01-22-2009
Because your daughters hairs is so thick, put olive oil in her hair , then comb through it with a nit comb. The olive oil makes it easier to comb through and helps the nits slide off the hair strands. Then of course you have to wash repeatedly to remove the olive oil. I would do this every day for about five days to really make sure they are gone. It is amazing how your hair looks fine and then you find nits. Be aggressive!!!
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Unregistered 08:13 PM 01-22-2009
the one word we as child care workers and parents hate the most. If off if the child care center still has them its time to call the state board in. You see someone isnt getting rid of them all before they go back to work or play. I know that we dont want to think about this but my mom has sores on her head and that is where they are keep. You see one day I was watching the untold stories of the ER where this lady went on a vacation and she had worms in here head her and her husban could see them but no one else could see them. Thats when I told my Sister who is a RN but works in the cancer side of it to have the DR to check out the sores on my mom head and low and behold they found them there so its something to check out and there is medication that they can give you to help getting rid of them. Only thing is its the same shampoo they use for crabs but it works but you have to take the scabs off in order to get to them. So good luck and there are alot of home treatments that you can do like Mayo and peanut butter to try and get rid of it to so good luck. Remember you have to wash every thing in HOT WATER and put things in BAGS for Two weeks. GOOD LUCK
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field 06:18 AM 06-17-2009
my sister got some lice on her hair when she slept at her friends house where her friend's nieces who happen to have lice slept with them. it was hard for her to get rid of nits most specifically. cutting the hair short can help somehow and totally removing all of the nits. use coconut oil as this can help you remove those nits and lice.
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Unregistered 05:10 PM 02-02-2010
Originally Posted by mary e:
My daughter works at a day care center/preschool in New York state. There was an outbreak of head lice and she was infested. Employees as well as children who have nits are sent home at once. My daughter has used Rid shampoo on several occasions and I have meticulously combed her hair to remove nits, but she keeps getting sent home by a supervisor who says she still has nits. She has very thick, long hair and it's very time consuming to comb through it all, but I have done it for her a couple of times. She even dyed her hair because she heard that that kills the lice.

This is not only frustrating and time consuming. It's also a major financial problem, as the day care center doesn't pay her on days when they send her home. I can't believe this is legal.

Can anyone give me guidance on what I might do to help her with this situation? She has lost a week's worth of pay so far.

Mary
You can't see where it is legal that the daycare doesn't want lice going around forever?? I understand you are partial to your daughter, but if she has lice, she can spread it to the kids and keep it going round and round and round!

KUDOS to the daycare who does this, because my son is in a daycare currently where I told them he got lice TWICE from there (I know from there because my other son hasnt had it and neither have me or my husband) and they do nothing about it.. Ready to change daycares!

If she takes the time to get it all out, she wont have to continue to miss work..& if she is using Rid over and over, she needs to change, because after 3 times if it doesn't work it is recommended to use something else - either OTC or Rx...
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momofboys 08:03 PM 02-02-2010
Originally Posted by mary e:
My daughter works at a day care center/preschool in New York state. There was an outbreak of head lice and she was infested. Employees as well as children who have nits are sent home at once. My daughter has used Rid shampoo on several occasions and I have meticulously combed her hair to remove nits, but she keeps getting sent home by a supervisor who says she still has nits. She has very thick, long hair and it's very time consuming to comb through it all, but I have done it for her a couple of times. She even dyed her hair because she heard that that kills the lice.

This is not only frustrating and time consuming. It's also a major financial problem, as the day care center doesn't pay her on days when they send her home. I can't believe this is legal.

Can anyone give me guidance on what I might do to help her with this situation? She has lost a week's worth of pay so far.

Mary
You have to make sure all the nits are gone. Buy the Rid combs that are sold in a two pack. They are the best for getting nits out. You may have to sit with her for several hours to get them all out. IT takes patience - don;t give up! My son (2nd grader) had it & personally I was very upset that his school does very little to inform parents about it. Make sure she has washed her coat/bedding/blankets & that you are vacuuming thoroughly to clean things up. Don't overuse the Rid shampoo - it is not safe to overuse it - it's a pesticide! I can understand your frustration but you have to see the other side of it. Think of the parents whose kids get it. It causes them lots of work to do in their home to get rid of them. Good luck!
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Persephone 08:38 PM 02-02-2010
Originally Posted by Unregistered:
You can't see where it is legal that the daycare doesn't want lice going around forever?? I understand you are partial to your daughter, but if she has lice, she can spread it to the kids and keep it going round and round and round!

KUDOS to the daycare who does this, because my son is in a daycare currently where I told them he got lice TWICE from there (I know from there because my other son hasnt had it and neither have me or my husband) and they do nothing about it.. Ready to change daycares!

If she takes the time to get it all out, she wont have to continue to miss work..& if she is using Rid over and over, she needs to change, because after 3 times if it doesn't work it is recommended to use something else - either OTC or Rx...
I totally agree with this post.

I'm sure she would hate to do it but if she has long hair, it would be a good idea to cut it. That would help.

Also, you can't just clean the hair, the whole house needs to be cleaned, vacuum the couches, chairs, mattresses, wash the bed sheets and pillows (not just cases) in hot water. Stuffed animals need to be put in a plastic bag and removed from the area for some time (not sure how long they say anymore) if they can't go in a washer. I even heard putting them in the freezer to kill lice. I'd say all the clothing in her room needs to be washed again to make sure they are not living there.

It's lots and lots of work! But it has to be done! I hope the same is being done at the daycare!!
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Carole's Daycare 12:26 PM 02-05-2010
My daughter caught lice sharing a locker at school about 10 ys ago. (before I started daycare) She has long curly hair- it was a mess. We struggled to get rid of the nits too, until we found an actual nit remover lotion to use in conjuction with the pesticide remover. (Nix is considered safer than RID, and if you've used RID a few times, you may want to switch anyway in case the lice are RID -resistant) Apparently it breaks down the adhesive the lice use to attach the nit to your hair. Of course we still spent a long time w/ the nit comb, and washed bedding etc, but it worked. We then switched to Tea Trea oil shampoo for a while (which supposedly discouraged re-infestation.) Treating the hair & scalp w/ a few drops of Rosemary oil can also prevent re-infestation.I've had a couple of kids over the years show up with lice here at daycare, but it has never spread among the children, since we caught it right away- separated the child & had them picked up- then went into psycho cleaning mode. The mom had said her Dr. told her to soak the hair for 30 mn in white vinegar to remove the nits, and apparently that worked too.
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misol 02:15 AM 02-06-2010
I have never had lice or known anyone who has. If someone in my daycare were to have lice I would love to be able to catch it before they spread it to the others and to my family. How do you discover that the children have lice? Are they itching and scratching all day and that prompts you to examine their hair and scalp? Or do you just regularly check all kids for it every couple of months?
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gbcc 06:29 AM 02-06-2010
Originally Posted by misol:
I have never had lice or known anyone who has. If someone in my daycare were to have lice I would love to be able to catch it before they spread it to the others and to my family. How do you discover that the children have lice? Are they itching and scratching all day and that prompts you to examine their hair and scalp? Or do you just regularly check all kids for it every couple of months?
I hate to tell you, but usually by time you see that a child has it, it has already spread. They travel quick. Everything needs to be washed like another poster said. Bedding, furniture, steam clean the carpets, stuffed animals, pillows. If you don't they will continue to re infest. Yes, lots of itching is the first clue. You have to look right down at the scalp. Pull back the hair where you normally cant see the scalp. They usually attach there. You have to get rid of the nits and not just the lice. The nits will turn into lice once they hatch and create new nits. Its common that people think it happens from being dirty but actually they are attracted to clean, no oily scalps. They are completly gross though either way!

In response to the original post. It is completely legal. Thanksfully I have not had to experience this. If I had a child or employee with lice, it would be their responsibility to get rid of them and they would not be allowed in my home until there was a Dr. statement sating they were completely cured of the nits.
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Chickenhauler 04:48 PM 02-06-2010
Originally Posted by mary e:
This is not only frustrating and time consuming. It's also a major financial problem, as the day care center doesn't pay her on days when they send her home. I can't believe this is legal.
Technically, this is an "illness" and if the employer does not have a paid-sick-leave policy, they are perfectly within their rights to send her home if she has lice.

No different than if she arrived at work with a fever, vomiting, hacking cough, etc.
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Unregistered 09:07 AM 03-01-2011
I am not sure if Mary got the answer about her daughter being kept at home. First of all, I work in a preschool and yes lices makes my face turn green, but I do have an issue if the child was treated or the employee and lice are gone, except for the nits (which are dead after treatment), and if a doctor clears you that you are able to retunr to work or school, why keep you at home. The nits will take forever to come out, you cannot get rid off them in seconds. It will take months to come out. If a child used the treatment and has a letter from her pediatric that she is able to return, this child should not be penalized by ignorant people from school. It will take months before they are gone, so a child should not seat home for almost a month and miss her educational rights due to ignorance and lack of information.
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Unregistered 12:57 PM 04-14-2011
It's mentality like that that keeps lice spreading! Just treating the hair is not enough! Why would you take the chance of leaving an egg on your head. Just because you've been treated doesn't mean the eggs are dead! You have to search daily. Reality-you will miss some eggs. That's why you comb through for two weeks afterwards! If you're still getting eggs at that point, you have an adult living on your head that's laying more eggs and you need to treat again using a different brand! On top of that, clean and vacuum everything! Clean pillow case EVERY NIGHT! Yes, every night! Clean towels and jackets every day! Bag sleeping animals and hats for a month! You want to get rid of them right? They aren't going away until you participate with diligence!
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lazysummer 06:51 AM 08-17-2011
I assume that you are from New York. I guess you have to visit lice treatment New York, a clinic that caters kids with lice infestations. The surroundings is kid-friendly and they uses Shepperd Method when getting rid of lice. It is a manual way of picking nits, eggs and lice strand by strand. Hope this helps!
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Unregistered 10:59 AM 08-17-2011
Don't underestimate the car seat!!! Vac everything. It's not fun.
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laundrymom 11:09 AM 08-17-2011
Don't forget the car. Be sure to clean the car
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Meyou 02:55 PM 08-17-2011
Originally Posted by Unregistered:
It's mentality like that that keeps lice spreading! Just treating the hair is not enough! Why would you take the chance of leaving an egg on your head. Just because you've been treated doesn't mean the eggs are dead! You have to search daily. Reality-you will miss some eggs. That's why you comb through for two weeks afterwards! If you're still getting eggs at that point, you have an adult living on your head that's laying more eggs and you need to treat again using a different brand! On top of that, clean and vacuum everything! Clean pillow case EVERY NIGHT! Yes, every night! Clean towels and jackets every day! Bag sleeping animals and hats for a month! You want to get rid of them right? They aren't going away until you participate with diligence!
This!

The life cycle of the nit eggs is two weeks so you need to comb every night for at least 2 weeks with long and/or thick hair to make sure you get every nit and bug. It's time consuming but it's the only way to get rid of the nits for sure. Vinegar works well to unstick the nits. My girls had a OTC treatment resistant strain a few years ago that was my worst nightmare to get rid of. Olive oil with smother the lice after you use the vinegar and then comb, comb, comb and comb some more. You literally have to comb every strand every night.

Everything that can't be washed down, vacuumed or washed and dried in the dryer has to be bagged for at least 4 weeks. You have to vacuum everyday and change bedding every night. One nit that's missed means you have to do it all over again. Trust me...I learned this the hard way.
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SandeeAR 04:52 PM 08-17-2011
Folks, this thread is from Jan. 2009.
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Tags:head lice, lice, nits, pesticide, rid shampoo
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