abstract: Pest control: a senior infection control nurse manager has defended her trust's pest control record, following a Conservative Party survey cataloguing the NHS's problems with rats, ants and cockroaches. Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust made 1,070 calls to pest extermination teams in just over two years: the highest number among 127 trusts surveyed. The trust's deputy director of infection prevention and control and patient safety, Sue Smith, said: 'As one of the biggest trusts in the country we would expect to have higher numbers of incidents. We have a pro-active approach and ask our staff to report any concerns.' The trust has cut rates of hospital-acquired infection, she added.