Pest control
Keeping your residents and staff safe from harmful pests
Pests such as rodents, flies, and cockroaches pose a clear and present danger to the health and wellbeing of care home residents. Paul Bates, managing director of Cleankill Pest Control, discusses how to prevent infestations in the first place, and what to expect from pest control contractors
While most healthy adults can usually cope with a sting from a wasp, bites from spiders and bedbugs, or even a mild dose of Salmonella, the consequences for vulnerable care home residents can be more serious or even fatal. Every effort should be made and documented to make sure residents, staff, and visitors are not put at risk. Even the healthiest person can have a reaction to a sting and suffer from anaphylactic shock – which can result in hospitalisation or even death if they are stung.
It is vital that pest control providers alongside care home staff are very vigilant, thorough, and responsive, particularly during the summer months, when residents spend more time outside and when doors and windows are more likely to be left open. Flies will take any opportunity to get inside and ants will be attracted by the tiniest crumbs from a biscuit. Cockroaches carry germs that can cause pneumonia, diarrhoea, and food poisoning, and their droppings (or cast skins) can also inflame allergies or asthmatic conditions. Regular and thorough cleaning of the residents’ living space is the best guard against pests to help prevent weakened immune systems from being exposed to
the diseases and pathogens that pests can transmit. Knowing your pest control services are in safe hands means your team can dedicate itself to running your care home and caring for the residents.
Prevention is better than cure The focus should be on preventing pest problems from happening in the first place. Our way of working is Exclusion and Restriction before Destruction. ‘Exclusion’ means that staff look at where pests are entering a premises and make sure any entrance points are blocked. ‘Restriction’ means keeping food and waste areas clean and tidy to create unfavourable conditions for pests, and ‘Destruction’ means the chemical and physical elimination of pests. If an unexpected problem does occur – such as a wasp nest, or an invasion of ants or flies – trained pest controllers should provide a calm reassuring service and act quickly to limit any danger and distress to residents and staff.
Communication is critical and
technicians should always take the time to talk with site contacts and appropriate care workers on site to explain what has happened and let them know that
everything is under control. As with all premises, pests will always be looking for ways to invade – particularly if there is an easy-to-reach food source. For instance, sweet liquid spillages and dropped biscuits attract a range of pests, and residential care homes with paved areas outside are particularly attractive to garden ants, who will happily form a trail through open patio doors.
Getting it wrong Apart from the obvious health implications, the impact of getting pest control wrong in a care home can be widespread. News of a pest infestation can result in stress for staff and reputational damage. The financial implications can also be serious depending on the type and extent of the infestation. Pest prevention contracts can give you peace of mind and allow you to focus on all the other complexities of running a care home. With pressures to make savings,
however, some managers may fall foul of what looks like a cheap quote, only to find they are constantly being ‘upsold’ additional services at the slightest sign of a problem – and their spend on pest control begins to spiral.
We believe that this practice is highly unethical. Care home managers should look carefully at cheap quotes and treat them with suspicion.
Keeping pests out No premises can ever be guaranteed pest free. Modern building techniques often use stud partitioning, breeze blocks, false flooring, and main service voids, which often lend themselves to creating the perfect harbourages for pests. A mouse can get in through a gap the width of a pencil, cockroaches can be brought in on cardboard packaging, bedbugs can be brought in by new residents,
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www.thecarehomeenvironment.com November 2023
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