So, this weekend I've been filling in for a patient new to the agency while my main patient is undergoing surgery. I was warned the location was small, cramped, dirty with an inexperienced mom and another young child who likes to unplug vent circuits. No worries, I can charm the pants off even the grumpiest, most neurotic parents, and thanks to many years spent in hospitality, I've learned to navigate around rambunctious little kids.
What I wasn't okay with was the filth and roaches. They are everywhere, big fat roaches and the skinny little German cockroaches, I've counted at least four different species, and I'm pretty sure this is either roach Woodstock/hippy drum circle or an attempt at building an advanced civilization to take over the world.
The patient is a sweet little premature baby, vent-dependent, post-pneumectomy, major respiratory issues and still recovering from neglect suffered by either mom or another agency (severe skin breakdown to the point of scarring on buttocks and infection of GT/Trach and eyes). She gets 24 hour nursing, but there was a 12 hour lapse. I left her at 7am, was back at 7pm, walked in the house and found roaches ON the patient, inside the suction equipment and running up and down the pole with her feed. Mom completely ignored the situation, flounced back into her room and hasn't been out since. She has openly stated that she will not be making any efforts to clean the place up.
I've chased off the bugs from the pt/equipment, sanitized everything to the best of my abilities, and taken pics (not of the patient or of any identifiers), but of the filth, congealing food on every surface, and the bugs. I'll be calling the caseworker and agency when my relief gets here (hopefully soon, because I can't use the bathroom with roaches skittering across the seat). I'm also contemplating an anonymous call to CPS.
Anyone ever been in a similar situation? How did you handle it?
