This is Leicestershire --
A grandmother has criticised the standard of cleaning on a children's hospital ward after seeing a cockroach run across a corridor.
Nicola Clark, of Syston, said she was "disgusted" at the lack of thorough cleaning during the four days her grandson, Riley Lightbown, was a patient at Leicester Royal Infirmary.
Ms Clark was visiting Riley, 19 months – who was admitted to the infirmary after breaking his leg on December 23 – when she spotted the insect.
The 40-year-old said: "I was walking along to see Riley on the Wednesday evening after Christmas, when I saw something start to scuttle across the corridor from the nurses' rest room towards the room where they prepare medication.
"At first I thought it was a spider but then I realised it was a cockroach.
"I told a staff member on the ward, whose reaction was 'are you sure?'.
"She wrapped it in a piece of tissue and flushed it down the toilet.
"She mentioned that carpets were being refitted in a treatment room and it had probably come from there."
Ms Clark said neither she, nor her daughter, Yasmin McCorkindale, who stayed with Riley, saw the ward mopped or cleaned during his stay.
She said: "It was only after I complained they seemed to get a cleaner.
"I know it was Christmas, but when I worked as a cleaner at the infirmary the wards were a lot cleaner.
"The playroom and the toys didn't seem to have been cleaned for days and you couldn't see yourself in the mirror on the wall because it was so smeared.
"I was disgusted at the standards of cleanliness."
Nigel Bond, head of facilities at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, said: "As unpleasant as a sighting like this must be, it seems to be an isolated incident.
"It is incredibly rare for a ward to have an issue with pests and thorough cleanliness inspections are carried out frequently.
"However, we do take this seriously and we have checked the area again to make sure there is absolutely no cause for concern."
Mr Bond said the play room and toys on the children's ward were cleaned daily.
He said mirrors were cleaned with a substance which could leave smears when it dried.
Figures supplied by the trust showed pest controllers had to be called to the city's three hospitals nearly 200 times last year.
There were only two incidents at the infirmary, one involving the possible sighting of a mouse and one of "biting insects" in the emergency decisions unit, next to accident and emergency. Reported by This is 2 days ago.
A grandmother has criticised the standard of cleaning on a children's hospital ward after seeing a cockroach run across a corridor.
Nicola Clark, of Syston, said she was "disgusted" at the lack of thorough cleaning during the four days her grandson, Riley Lightbown, was a patient at Leicester Royal Infirmary.
Ms Clark was visiting Riley, 19 months – who was admitted to the infirmary after breaking his leg on December 23 – when she spotted the insect.
The 40-year-old said: "I was walking along to see Riley on the Wednesday evening after Christmas, when I saw something start to scuttle across the corridor from the nurses' rest room towards the room where they prepare medication.
"At first I thought it was a spider but then I realised it was a cockroach.
"I told a staff member on the ward, whose reaction was 'are you sure?'.
"She wrapped it in a piece of tissue and flushed it down the toilet.
"She mentioned that carpets were being refitted in a treatment room and it had probably come from there."
Ms Clark said neither she, nor her daughter, Yasmin McCorkindale, who stayed with Riley, saw the ward mopped or cleaned during his stay.
She said: "It was only after I complained they seemed to get a cleaner.
"I know it was Christmas, but when I worked as a cleaner at the infirmary the wards were a lot cleaner.
"The playroom and the toys didn't seem to have been cleaned for days and you couldn't see yourself in the mirror on the wall because it was so smeared.
"I was disgusted at the standards of cleanliness."
Nigel Bond, head of facilities at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, said: "As unpleasant as a sighting like this must be, it seems to be an isolated incident.
"It is incredibly rare for a ward to have an issue with pests and thorough cleanliness inspections are carried out frequently.
"However, we do take this seriously and we have checked the area again to make sure there is absolutely no cause for concern."
Mr Bond said the play room and toys on the children's ward were cleaned daily.
He said mirrors were cleaned with a substance which could leave smears when it dried.
Figures supplied by the trust showed pest controllers had to be called to the city's three hospitals nearly 200 times last year.
There were only two incidents at the infirmary, one involving the possible sighting of a mouse and one of "biting insects" in the emergency decisions unit, next to accident and emergency. Reported by This is 2 days ago.