Scabies outbreak in at least five schools

Wed, Feb 11th 2015, 09:36 AM

Education Minister Jerome Fitzgerald said on Monday that all public schools are on "alert" after the scabies outbreak in at least five schools, including two on Andros. While education and health officials have contained the outbreak, Fitzgerald noted that more cases could pop up.

"We have all of our schools on alert now for any signs to bring it to our attention quickly," Fitzgerald said. "We are now working very closely with the Ministry of Health and the Public Hospitals Authority (PHA)."

In the last two weeks there have been outbreaks of the skin infection at T.A. Thompson Junior High School, D.W. Davis Junior High School, Woodcock Primary School, North Andros High School and Mastic Point Primary School. In the case of the Andros schools, Fitzgerald said the students diagnosed with scabies are siblings.

"We are watching it closely," Fitzgerald said speaking generally. "We are just trying to stay on top of it."

Fewer than 10 students were diagnosed with scabies. Fitzgerald said the outbreak could have been worse had it not been for the quick work of health officials.

"They really responded extremely quickly," he said. "They tested students and advised us on what needs to be done in order to control the further spreading of it. "I think because of the quick response and the seriousness with which it was taken, I think we were able to contain it to a great extent and screen hundreds of kids."

Fitzgerald said this recent outbreak is not the first of its kind and will not be the last.

"When you look at where these start, these don't start in the school. They start in the home. So it's really the environment that the kids come from and so it's an educational process as well," he said. "We're trying to educate the parents so they can understand what causes [scabies] so that they can prevent it but once it comes into the school then we have to address it. But the key is we are able to respond quickly whenever it does happen."

Scabies is a contagious skin infection that spreads rapidly in crowded conditions and is caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei, according to the World Health Organization. The disease causes severe itching and is commonly transmitted by skin-to-skin contact. All of the schools that were previously identified have been sanitized, Fitzgerald said.

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