To think that a hospital room should be clean?

[dillite]

I've been at the hospital since Christmas night and have been placed into a single occupancy room- and it's filthy. The toilet seat has poop smeared all over it, even the lid when down. The shower has some kind of yellow stain- not permanent as most came out when I was showering. The sinks- there's two, also have some kind of residue and also old blood in them. The floor in the room also has dirty stainsand dried blood marks on it. I managed to get one of the nurses to empty the bathroom bin when I got here as it was overflowing with used adult nappies/ pads and stank like hell. I know it's Christmas, but surely the cleaning should be done anyway? My dd was walking in her black tights on the floor yesterday and they actually got a crusty layer of dirt on them.

I have asked several times for someone to come and at least wash the floor but no-one has been yet. So aibu and too demanding?

[DeepThought]

Photos and PALS

[Pobblewhohasnotoes]

I'm a nurse and YANBU.

Have you spoken to the nurse in charge about it? There should be a domestic on everyday, regardless of Christmas.

If the domestic isn't doing their job properly the nurses can get hold of their manager and complain.

[Birdsgottafly]

No, my DD was in A&E and a container of urine had been left on the shelf of the cubicle.

My niece was transferred to a bed and I found a @sharp" still on the cabinet.

Complain, they have a budget for cleaning and it is vital.

I contracted TB because there wasn't enough porters to take a bed from Major OBs to a ward, so I was put in a bed that a previous patient had, had TB in, instead if being taken up in my own bed off the OB Unit.

[dillite]

I have taken photos and was going to write a complaint to the trust on discharge and once I'm back to normal, I just wasn't sure whether or not I was being precious.

[Sirzy]

Yanbu, complain to everyone!

DS has spent a lot of time in hospital and it is is always spotless - he walks around in bare feet and they stay clean - the domestics are constantly on the ward and every room gets cleaned at least twice a day.

[Pobblewhohasnotoes]

Actually as a nurse in charge I would rather a patient came to talk to me about it so I could do something about it there and then, rather than them running off to pals and me hearing about it a week later.

I'm not saying don't complain, it's not acceptable for a ward to be grubby, but it's a lot easier if I can do something about it straight away.

[dillite]

Oh and I am yet to see a domestic- admittedly I do sleep quite a lot so might have missed one. I have been complaing to various nursing staff and the doctors as and when I've seen one- they just say that they will try and get someone but that's as far as it goes. They've been fab otherwise, very helpful and professional.

[seafoodudon]

I had similar... well not so hideous but blood all over bathroom floor and room not at all clean last time I was in postnatal. After naghing incessantly for 12 hours a cleaner arrived and cleaned very stroppily telling me that she was only meant to do the room twice a week. I was shocked and horrified that it wasn't policy to clean between patients. I will be discharging myself immediately this time pretty much regardless of medical advice!

[Pobblewhohasnotoes]

Well doctors won't do anything about it. They might pass the message on to us, but that's it. I don't mean that to sound bad, but they have nothing to do with the general running of the ward.

Go find the nurse in charge of the shift. The domestics should be cleaning the rooms and toilets everyday. If that doesn't work then yes go to pals.

[dillite]

Succes!!!! My moaning has finally paid off and I just had my room cleaned! Only took 2 days of complaining for it to get done.

[eurochick]

That's terrible! No wonder there are infection issues with conditions like this. I'm glad it has finally been cleaned, OP, and hope you get well enough to be out of there soon.

[PacificDingbat]

YANBU. And please complain .

I don't know about the situation in your hospital of course, but a lot of the poor standard of cleaning is related to how new hospitals have been financed in the last few years (PFI).
A private company finances and builds the hospital, then leases it back to the NHS and has the rights to a lot of the services that keep it running like catering and cleaning. For profit maximisation these things are then put to tender and given to the cheapest bidder with v little quality control.
It's appalling.

Your room, bathroom incl toilet/shower/sinks should be cleaned every day. Yes, speak to sister on duty or nursing management. Take it to PALS.

Hope your home soon.

[ProfPlumSpeaking]

1. Specifically ask the nurse in charge to ensure the room is cleaned. Take a note of her name. Do not be frightened to do this - YANBU and it will not compromise your care.

1. Whether or not something happens immediately, write in a formal complaint when you are home and feeling better - clearly something went wrong with the system.

1. If you feel like you have got nowhere after 1 and 2, then contact one of the governors of the NHS trust that runs the hospital. They will help you and will be keen to know about the issues that are affecting patients.

1. If you still get nowhere, then write to the CQC with your concerns.

You should not have to be doing any of this btw and if you are not well enough to do it, then don't feel guilty.

I hope you get better soon xxx

[OOAOML]

My daughter was in hospital recently and the cleaners were working every day. Everything was cleaned, the beds had a bit to sign to say they'd been cleaned, the playroom and wipeable toys were cleaned - the place was spotless.

Not having the room cleaned is ridiculous - bodily fluids left uncleaned is a scandal.

[Eliza22]

I left nursing 6 years ago (after 20+ years) and the situation you describe was the same when I started training in the 80's and was the same when I left in 2006. Hospitals are filthy. Cleaning is non existent. It is shameful and dangerous. What was it Florence nightingale said "First, do the patient no harm"? No chance.

Sorry to be so critical but the vet I take my cat to is cleaner than most wards.

YANBU

[Peekingduck]

This is why a nurse found me in the toilet adjacent to my dad's single occupancy room with a pair of rubber gloves on and a big packet of anti-bacterial cleaning wipes. My dad's immune system was compromised due to his cancer treatment and the place was filthy. She told me she would get a cleaner along later in the afternoon to clean. I just carried on cleaning the bed frame and the floor of the room while she was talking, and told her that "later" could be too late. I cleaned every surface I could see.

[FortyDoorsToNowhere]

I am a domestic, ask the nurse for the domestic supervisor number and ring them your self.

Better still ask to have infection control number.

[FortyDoorsToNowhere]

If you are in a side room I automatically would assume you are barried nursing, so I would treat that room as if you had an infection, auto immune or at risk.

I would use 2 anticlore tablets per 1 litre of water.

Threads like this makes my blood boil, it is no need in 2013 for hospitals to be like this.

I worked Christmas Day and it was business as usual.

[SofiaAmes]

This was my experience of the hospitals in London when I lived there in the late 90's through mid 2000's. Disgustingly filthy. Feces, urine and blood on every surface was common place. I found myself stepping over dead pigeons to get into one hospital and even though I pointed it out to someone, they were still there when I came back days later. I saw cleaner hospitals in villages in Ethiopia and Eritrea.

[Sillybillybob]

Your room should be cleaned every day and certainly between patients!!! That is absolutely disgusting and I would say you are well within your rights to complain.

DS has a compromised immune system and spends a lot of time in hospital and I've had charge nurses question me about the standard of cleaning and make complaints to housekeeping because it's not been up to scratch.

I'm glad for you it's been done today but it should be done tomorrow as well.

Hope you're feeling better soon.

[SofiaAmes]

And everyone loves to look down on our medical system in the USA (which absolutely does have its faults), but I have never ever walked into a dirty hospital (or doctors office), even in the poorest parts of Los Angeles serving a mostly indigent population.

[pinkmagic1]

It is disgusting. My ds was in hospital for a routine operation a couple of years and the little girl in the next bed bled all over the floor when having a drip removed. Despite repeatedly mentioning the blood it was still there 48 hours later. There was a bed pan with urine and tissue in the toilet/shower cubicle that was left for approx 24 hours also.

[Thingymajigs]

Our local hospital is filthy too. I gave birth to ds1 13 years ago and was disgusted to see blood everywhere in the toilets and wards. I thought things might have changed recently but after using the toilets in the maternity units last week I'm pretty worried. I was desperate to use the toilet but I didn't want to touch anything in there. Wet tissue covered the floor and lots of other things I'd rather not remember. I'm honestly worried about giving birth in February in such a disgusting place. Surely it'd be safer at home.

[dillite]

Thank you for all your advice, it's very helpful.

I am in no state to have been making a lot of fuss- I had a burst appendix with slight blood poisoning as a result ( thankfullythey managed to get me into surgery very quickly so it didn't spread) and they foind dome cystswholst doing the surgery so I have been quite drugged up the whole time- still am. I was put on a morphine drip for the pain in the early afyernoon and then an hour later the nurse barged in saying that I have been discharged and to vacate tje bed asap. I was left there with no money trying to get a taxi to go home. Thank god my mum had enough cash on her to pay for the 20 mile fare. This has been one bizarre experience and I am certain to complaon once I am well enough to.

soory for the typos I'm still a bit dozy.

[PennySillin]

Yuk! Sounds awful OP and totally unacceptable................ but on the plus side they saved your life!

Hope you make a good recovery, take it easy and definitely word a letter when you feel well enough. (A copy to the Infection Control Lead Nurse would be interestingly received.)