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Pink, but Not Pretty
Debunking the Myths of Pink Eye
By Lisa Hurt Kozarovich
"That's one of my pet peeves," says Dr. Ferrell. "Daycares will let kids with colds come in, but not one with conjunctivitis. The kid that's sneezing is spewing secretions all over the place and he's more contagious than the one with pink eye. A policy like that really puts parents in a hard position because they're going to have to miss work if their kid isn't on antibiotics and we're telling them the antibiotics aren't going to really help. And it puts us in a tough position because we don't want to give antibiotics just to give them. In the past, we've over-prescribed antibiotics and now we're paying the price – we have bugs, including some that cause conjunctivitis and some that cause more serious illnesses, that are resistant to antibiotics."
In her practice, Dr. Ferrell often writes notes to or even calls daycares and schools about their policy. "I'll sometimes send notes for parents saying that 'antibiotics will not help; please allow this child back in school,'" she says. "Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but it's worth a shot." Still, knowing the highly contagious nature of pink eye, daycare providers and schools are reluctant.
