Local parents struggling with the cost of living are finding that treatments for minor ailments such as headlice are unaffordable.
Head lice are small insects that can live on the head. The lice feed by sucking blood from the scalp – these bites are the cause of intense itching.
There is no ‘season’ for lice and they are a common frustration for parents and kids as the itching associated with them can last months, and getting rid of them can be costly and time-consuming.
“We realised our daughter had lice one night, looking back she had said a few times that her head was itchy, but it wasn’t until she was intensely itching that we realised it was lice,” says a Brightwater mum who didn’t want her child to be identified.
She says, at that time of night no pharmacies were open to buy lice treatment, but the supermarkets were.
“The next day we went to the chemist and got another lice treatment, a lice comb, and a special lice hair spray,” the mum explains.
Treatments contain ingredients to kill both the active lice and the eggs. One treatment costs between $19 and $32 dollars and it’s not uncommon to need to use three or four applications on one infestation. If other members of the household catch lice they also need to be treated.
“Fortunately, we are in a situation where cost was not a barrier, however, we knew one family that simply didn’t have the money to treat their child,” she says.
“You can go to your GP, however if you discover your child has them late at night that isn’t much help and often there is a wait to get a doctor’s appointment.”
Wakefield Pharmacy chief pharmacist Hamid Johari says that the wet-combing method (wet combing with cheap conditioner and a fine-tooth headlice comb) is an effective way to find and remove head lice if done properly.
“Combing is key when dealing with lice,” Hamid says. “We have free self-care headlice cards to give to anyone, providing information and instructions on different methods.”
He also says that the number of treatments needed depends on the degree of infestation and how long the child’s hair is.
