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OTTUMWA, IOWA -- For our Facebook Story of the Day, our Facebook fans wanted to know; what are the policies and procedures at local school districts when a student is found to have lice?

KTVO reached out to the Iowa Department of Public Health on Tuesday, and a spokesperson with the department told KTVO that new guidelines were put into place in 2009 concerning this topic.

The Iowa Department of Public Health instructed school districts (in 2009) to discontinue routine school-based screenings for lice. Also, the department advised school districts to discontinue no nit policies.

Under the new guidelines, children are to be sent home at the end of the day, and no sprays or chemicals are to be used.

To stop lice from spreading, the public health department encourages parents to be taught appropriate treatment, such as medical shampoos, and recommends that the student see a doctor if the problem persists.

A spokesperson for the Ottumwa Community School District told KTVO this afternoon that the guidelines that were put forth by the public health department, are the guidelines that the district follows.

Also, it should be noted that the lice problem in public schools is not what it once was. The Ottumwa Community School District does not see as many lice cases as they did 10 years ago, when it was a greater problem.