The emergency room at Morton Plant North Bay Hospital in New Port Richey has re-opened after bed bugs shut down part of the emergency room on Thursday.
According to hospital spokesperson Beth Hardy, the hospital stopped taking patients through the ambulance entrance after staff noticed bed bugs on a patient Thursday morning.
"Bed bugs are in the community and they are all around us," Hardy said. "From time to time, what can happen is a patient can come in with bed bugs on their person or on their belongings, so it is something to be vigilant about."
The area was sterilized, and a dog specially trained to find bed bugs was brought in before patients were allowed back into the ER.
The hospital started accepting ambulances again on Thursday at 6:20 p.m., Hardy said.
