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Family of student with scabies concerned about school's notification process

Posted at 4:08 PM, Sep 15, 2017
and last updated 2018-07-24 21:31:08-04

The family of a middle school student who has been diagnosed with scabies has expressed concerns about other parents not being notified about it.

Serenity Ross, who attends Tennyson Middle School, has stayed home since she went to the doctor on Wednesday. Currently, she is being treated for scabies. 

According to Centers for Disease Control, the most common symptoms of being infected with scabies mites, include itching and a skin rash, that can be severe. In addition, the infestation can be transmitted through prolonged skin-to-skin contact with someone with scabies.

"It was just like a bug bite, I noticed it last week but then after I went to the nurse, a few days later, it started spreading all over on my legs and my arms," Ross said.

Ross' school is not notifying parents about her diagnosis, which concerns her grandmother Jane Stevens.

"I think they should've been notified. They should have been sent home a letter saying, there is a student to have been known to have scabies in the school and advise parents to keep an eye out for this and get the proper treatment to get it taken care of," Stevens said.

A Waco ISD's Executive Director of Communications Kyle DeBeer said in a statement the district makes the decision of whether to send a notification letter based on available information, including the nature of the illness, number of cases and the recommendations from the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District.

"Only one case of scabies has been reported at Tennyson Middle School this year, and at this time, that case is still unconfirmed. There is not an outbreak. Also I would reiterate what the health district has said, which is that scabies is not highly contagious in a school setting," DeBeer said.

However, Stevens thinks is still important for parents to know.

"The school have to step up and do something more than what they're doing. They're not notifying the parents of anything to prevent this and to prevent other kids from catching it," Stevens said.

According to the CDC, Children and adults usually can return to child care, school or work the day after treatment. Scabies can be prevented by avoiding direct skin-to-skin contact with an infested person or with items, like clothing or bedding used by that person.

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