PC Opposition House Leader Barry Petten wants to see a “full assessment” of sanitary conditions completed at the Health Science Centre.
On Thursday, Petten tabled pictures in the House of Assembly which he says were taken recently, showing rat traps and rodent droppings in a patient’s room, as well as food and garbage on the floor behind a bedside table.
Petten says government must show it can keep current facilities clean for patients and staff before building new ones.
“It’s about time that government started really focusing on what they already got in terms of infrastructure and upgrades, and keeping what they got up to date before going out and building another load of buildings, which I don’t know how they’re going to staff, let alone keep clean,” he said.
Health Minister Tom Osborne says it was the first time he had seen the pictures, adding he has contacted NL Health Services’ CEO David Diamond regarding the matter.
“If, in fact, these pictures are recent, this is not acceptable,” he said. “There are facility managers and maintenance in place, and if any patient sees something like this they should immediately bring it to the attention of staff.
“But I’m certainly looking into it to get feedback from the health authority to find out what can be done to mitigate the issue as quickly as possible.”