Vancouver hospital can’t control rat problem

VANCOUVER, Canada — Rats scurrying down hospital hallways, chewing through wires and nibbling on food scraps near the cafeteria.

These are a few of the recent rodent sightings reported by public health inspectors, nurses and staff members at B.C. Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Vancouver.

A surging rat population in the hospital’s cafeteria and food preparation area has prompted management to step up rodent control efforts in recent weeks.

Inspectors believe that despite the increase, the rodents do not pose an imminent health risk to the hospital’s patients, visitors or staff, said Richard Taki, regional director of health protection for Vancouver Coastal Health.

But the results of last month’s inspection highlight the hospital’s ongoing challenges dealing with vermin, a situation hospital management and health inspectors say has been exacerbated by demolition and construction work in recent months.

Inspection reports from 2013 show Vancouver Coastal Health had previously identified issues with rats and mice in the hospital cafeteria, and more recently, last month’s inspection found signs the problem had worsened.

Inspectors issued verbal and written directives after the Dec. 22, 2014 visit, according to the environmental health inspection report, which notes: “Minimal pest proofing has been completed to date which is contributing to the difficulty in controlling and abating the rodent activity with the food services.”

The report also mentions: “A number of food products have been chewed through resulting in products being discarded,” and “wiring of equipment chewed on in the retail side which also raises a safety concern.”

The most recent inspection report lists a “Target Completion Date” for rodent control recommendations as next Tuesday, Jan. 27.

Taki said the hospital has an action plan in place with the help of the pest control company.

“We’ve asked them to almost quadruple-up on the service until everything gets under control,” said Taki

“I don’t think it’s any different from any restaurant that has a rodent problem. They have rodents, they’re under control, they’ve got a company looking after it. They’re working toward resolving a problem, but you know, we live in a city that has rats everywhere.”

Nurses have seen the pest problem worsen, along with general cleanliness, said Claudette Jut, regional chair of the B.C. Nurses Union council.

As a nurse at Children’s Hospital, Jut said the rodent problem there “has definitely got worse” in recent years.

The Hospital Employees Union has identified the issue of short-staffed cleaning and food service in the hospital, and raised it “on several occasions” with the private contractor who employs the workers, said HEU spokesman Mike Old.