I saw a huge cockroach at my patient's house

[50kn]

i was assigned this private duty case (night shift) ---the patient is a 5 months baby. my company said that the case is lvn case and pays only at lvn rate. i am an rn but other patient's houses are far from my house, i just vaguely accepted the case.

at the house yesterday, while family members were sleeping, i was with this baby, and saw a huge cockroach. i have seen cockroaches only a few times in my life, but this one was so big and had light brown color. i was so terrified. i saw cockroaches twice throughout the night though i don't know if they were the same one or different roaches.

anyway, i am scared of cockroaches. according to my company, i was supposed to work with this patient 5 days a week but after i saw the cockroaches, i decided to call my company tomorrow and tell them i would not be able to work 5 days a week, probably i would be able to work only two days a week. (i actually don't' want go back to this house but until i found the next job, i should work at least a little).

is there somebody who refused the case because of horrible environment (such as cockroach, spiders and ants...)?

[LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN]

Imagine you are on the toilet,and you see a mouse.

But,the mouse has nwhere to go. It ran back and forth until i was finished and opened the door.

ididnt tell the parents though.

i thought we have to tell the agencies when we see roaches,because they can crawl into trachs?

Eek!!!

The agencies I have work for required nurses to report roaches because of the danger of a roach crawling into a trach.

[SDALPN]

Not all agencies require roaches to be reported. If you see one roach, it may not be a problem or the family could already have an exterminator involved. If you see them frequently, it may be a good idea to talk with the family first and then talk to the agency. Sometimes the family will be able to explain or even tell you that the agency is aware. Too many calls to the office can get you labeled by the office and out of work quick.

[SDALPN]

I should also add that not just roaches can crawl into a trach. One ant could be searching for that one drop of formula and find it's way to the trach and you'd never know. Or a housefly sneaks in during the summer. There isn't always an infestation and it only takes one bug to get into a trach. If you report to the agency every time you see one bug, it would be ridiculous. How many times have you read about a pt dying from a bug getting in the trach? Of course we should be careful! But we can't overreact either. I would be most concerned about the home being sanitary for the pt. Unsanitary conditions would be more likely to cause an issue than a bug getting in a trach.

[LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN]

How many times have you read about a pt dying from a bug getting in the trach?

I can say, twice; two nurses I know had pts that died because of a cockroach entered their trach. Their pathology couldn't "cough it out"...

I also know a local ER that gets thousands of "code cockroach" removals annually.

The thing about roaches is if their is one, it's like a 1:50 ratio...so I don't think their is an "overreaction" when most posters have posted their experiences with roaches.

I once entered a house where a child was on a trach/vent who had roaches crawling all over walls, etc...they were not on any of the equipment or near his bed; his parents had borax surrounding the base of the furniture where his supplies were kept, the refrigerator, and the bed.

I saw it working with my own two eyes. She was actively taking care of it. I didn't stay on the case, though.

At the pediatric facility I worked for, we were CONSTANTLY exterminating, when a child had a MAJOR infestation so bad we found roaches in our purses, and a "tribe" had generations of roaches breeding in an infant scale. THAT was interesting...

Another interesting fact about roaches...in order to get rid of a major infestation, you have to change up on exterminating products, they have a way to developing and immunity to the products...hence why they are known to be the old living species on this earth.

[smartnurse1982]

Apparently,everyone is talking about something different.

The ones in the south,they look like cockroaches,but they aren't.

They are better known as Palmetto bug,waterbug(incorrect though).

But they are scientifically known as the American cockroach.

The small ones are german cockroaches.

The op seems to be talking about the american ones,the 2 inch ones.

From what I hear,they fly in from outside. They seem to be apart of the ecosystem in the south.

Yes,scary. Part of the reason I moved back north after living down south for 8 months.

I have a phobia.

Anayway,it doesn't matter if you clean your home or not. They just fly through the windows and get in the vents like any other bug,so I would be cautious of saying the clients are filthy.

Now the small ones,most often times that is a sign of uncleaness.

[CloudySue]

I also know a local ER that gets thousands of "code cockroach" removals annually.

An ER deals with thousands of "code cockroaches" yearly? Given that "thousands" would have to mean at least two thousand, that would be an average of nearly 5.5 of those per day. Where is that hospital, in the worst part of an urban area?

[SDALPN]

I sure couldn't find any stories about it on google or Yahoo. I guess those kids that had roaches crawl in their trachs were named lemonjello and female too! *insert sarcasm*

[LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN]

An ER deals with thousands of "code cockroaches" yearly? Given that "thousands" would have to mean at least two thousand, that would be an average of nearly 5.5 of those per day. Where is that hospital, in the worst part of an urban area?

To think about it, being an urban lady myself....

[LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN]

I sure couldn't find any stories about it on google or Yahoo. I guess those kids that had roaches crawl in their trachs were named lemonjello and female too! *insert sarcasm*

Those kids are from a part of town where reporters and news reports give priority over the plight of drugs and violence, not unfortunate cases of roach infestations...it is deemed, sad, but "part of the territory"