Rats vs Vancouver Hospital’s

Rats scurrying down hospital hallways, chewing through wires and nibbling on food scraps near the cafeteria. Children’s Hospital, the rodent problem there has definitely got worse in recent years.

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.

There are no mentions of rodent problems in the most recent inspection reports for the cafeterias of other Vancouver hospitals, including St. Paul’s Hospital, UBC Hospital, and Vancouver General Hospital.

Kristy Anderson, a spokeswoman from the provincial Ministry of Health, said if an inspector finds a food service establishment is not responsive to food safety notices or orders, the establishment “could be fined or ultimately be required to shut down until the situation is remedied. To our knowledge this has never occurred in a hospital or health authority-run facility.”