£400,000

Scotland’s largest health board – NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde – have paid contractors £448,879 to get rid of rats, flies, cockroaches, silverfish, ants and pigeons at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) campus since opening in the summer of 2015.
The figure makes up more than half the total spend on pest control for the whole NHSGGC estate.

NHSGGC said that while contractors tackle existing pests, they are also used to proactively look for potential infestations or prevent further ones from occurring.
“All sites across Greater Glasgow and Clyde operate a ‘pro-active service’ where they are routinely inspected for pest infestations.
It comes after pigeon droppings were found in a plant room at the new hospital last year, which was suspected of having led to a fungal Cryptococcus infection in two patients.

A spokesman from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: “We continuously and actively reviews pest prevention and control requirements through regular audits in all hospitals and premises. This integrated management approach significantly reduces pest issues through proactive and preventative systems.