LEAVENWORTH, Kan. – Bats have made themselves at home in one section of the surgical floor at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Leavenworth, and it’s created a scheduling mess for patients.
About sixteen patients had to reschedule surgeries because of the bat infestation, but the spokesperson for the hospital says there’s no need to worry about bats ever being inside the surgery rooms.
Public Affairs Officer Jim Gleisberg says the bats were discovered in the changing rooms of the surgery area. He says the ceilings in the surgery rooms are completely sealed off, so there’s no way for bats to get into those rooms, but they did get into the dressing area.
“We called in the pest control company, they came in, removed the bats, it was a couple, three day process,” said Gleisberg.
Pest control also put in special devices that allow bats out of the building, but not into the building. For the last several days, the area where the bats were found has been deep-cleaned. Officials say that air quality tests are going on right now, and if everything stays on track the surgery area should reopen on Monday.