Unwelcome visitors: NHS Tayside pest problems revealed

Bats in wards. Rats in labs. Insect outbreaks in labour suites.

These are just a handful of the pest-control incidents seen at Dundees Ninewells Hospital with nearly 200 outbreaks in the last two years.

A Freedom of Information request by the Tele has revealed pest problems including people being bitten in theatre recovery, dead pigeons found on wards and ants in the renal unit.

Across other NHS Tayside properties there were another 562 problems in 2012 and 2013, giving the health board more than one pest control call-out a day on average.

In March last year there was a ferret in Kings Cross Hospitals Armitstead Child Development Centre, while a day later a dead rabbit was found in Stracathro Hospital a hospital which has also had a dead bird removed from its surgical unit. There have been dozens of outbreaks of ants across the health boards hospitals, from wards to treatment rooms to theatres.

Arbroath Infirmary saw half-a-dozen outbreaks of cockroaches in 2012, and Ninewells workers have had to deal with gulls, flying ants and numerous incidents documented as beasties.

The Dundee hospital has even had issues with maggots in its laundry room.

Margaret Watt, from the Scottish Patients Association, said problems were occurring too often.

She said: Id like to think it is taken very seriously when it happens and it shouldnt happen if it can be helped if it is happening with that consistency there is something obviously terribly wrong, when you get all these things with patients in beds having bugs biting them. Even one or two incidents are concerning.

It is just one of those things that shouldnt be happening, but we need to sort it.

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Unwelcome visitors: NHS Tayside pest problems revealed