Published: October 24, 2007 08:58 pm            

Avert a new health crisis

In the Cullman city or county school systems, if a student is determined to have head lice, they will not be allowed to return to school until a health care provider determines the student in question is clear of head lice.

The reason is simple, if not obvious. It is in the best interest of those in the school system to contain an outbreak.

Head lice is a contagious annoyance that, undeservedly, carries a stigma. Anyone can contract it regardless of one’s financial status, education level or morality.

Similar statements can be said for staph infections with one important addition. Staph can lead to debilitating illness and potential death.

Over the past week The Times has received calls and letters from parents concerned with the possibility their child had either been exposed to, or contracted staph at school.

No letters were sent home alerting parents to look for tell-tale signs and few, if any, provisions were made to eradicate all potential sources of the outbreak at the schools.

According to officials, football locker rooms, an apparent location of more than one outbreak, were thoroughly cleaned; but were helmets, shoulder pads and other equipment players may share at one point or another? What about other areas of the school those same players used on a daily basis like bathrooms and lunchrooms?

The Times would like to report the number of students and personnel and the number of schools involved in the outbreak.

Unfortunately, we can't. Currently there are no numbers to report. The school systems have none, and they are not required to report infections to the Cullman County Health Department.

That doesn't excuse the fact parents should have been alerted staph infections had been determined.

There are instances and illnesses considered so contagious everyone in a school system is alerted.

The county school system’s own communicable disease policy states:

“The superintendent has the authority to exclude a student or staff member from school when reliable evidence or information from a qualified source confirms his/her of having a communicable disease or infection that is known to be spread by any form of casual contact and is considered a health threat to the school population. Such a student or staff member shall be excluded unless their physician approves school attendance or the condition is no longer considered contagious.”

It’s a good policy, but preventative measures can stop an outbreak before it occurs.

Although the school system has a precedent on requiring such rules, it does not hold all the responsibility.

Parents are equally responsible and must be held accountable. How many parents in Cullman didn't report their child's infection to school officials or make sure through a physician their child was no longer contagious before sending them back to school?

Those parents’ disregard for other children is inexcusable.

Parents alerting school officials should be commended. It’s sad those same officials didn't pass the information on to all parents.

This isn’t about attaching a stigma to a child or scaring parents. This is a health issue dealing with an “infection that is known to be spread by any form of casual contact.” Parents should have been told there was a possibility their child had been exposed to a staph infection at their school.

Over the past week administrators in the Cullman city school system have gathered information to determine what preventative measures can be made to stop an outbreak before it happens. It’s an important first step. They should be commended for their actions.

Both systems need to immediately set standards and rules regarding staph. It should be done because it's the moral thing to do. But, if the well being of a student body isn't enough to make administrators take action, they might consider another one.

In a litigious society, serious illness resulting in death can be costly to a school system's financial well being. It would be a sad commentary if that's what it took for both local systems to finally take action.

        

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