Head Lice

Head Lice Information

As a reminder, here is a review of certain best practices regarding head lice.  Each school year, a number of our students will experience head lice, which is considered a “nuisance condition” by the Michigan Department of Community Health.  The Michigan Head Lice Manual, co-published by the Department of Education and the Michigan Department of Community Health (August 2013 Revision), guides school policies and practices regarding head lice and is a great resource for parents/guardians.

The number one recommendation for parents/guardians is to check your child’s head weekly for lice and/or nits.  Discovering head lice early can often greatly lessen the burden of dealing with it.  Since direct head-to-head contact is required for transmission, increases in cases of head lice often follow sleep-overs, extended family gatherings, and other activities where children are likely to engage in play that involves head-to-head contact. If you don’t already have the practice of checking your child built into your weekly routines I would encourage you to consider starting as this is an issue that can occur throughout the school year.

The Michigan Head Lice Manual is a useful resource and addresses a number of harmful myths and misinformation surrounding head lice.  It is important to have factual information, please review the Myths and Facts page for more information. While dealing with head lice is not fun for anyone involved, please remember that lice do not jump, fly, and only survive for a short time away from a human head.