PATIENTS were not at risk from pests including wasps' nests found in clinical areas hospital bosses insisted today.

The Conservatives today revealed pest controllers had been called out 57 times between January 2006 and April 2008 to Buckinghamshire hospitals.

The statement said the county's hospitals had "comparatively few instances" when pest controllers were called out.

The figures reported that nine wasps' nests were discovered in clinical areas run by Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust.

Mosquitoes, cockroaches, ants and fleas had also been found at wards managed by the trust, which runs Wycombe. Amersham and Stoke Mandeville hospitals.

Today the trust released a statement which said: "We take pest control in our hospitals extremely seriously and work closely with our pest control contractors to eradicate pests as soon as possible.

"We closely monitor our buildings, paying particular emphasis to clinical areas, and act promptly where an issue is identified."

It said: "The data requested under the Freedom of Information Act includes a period in which we were moving a number of inpatient wards from aged accommodation at Stoke Mandeville Hospital into new purpose-built facilities.

"We are fully compliant with the hygiene code, part of the Healthcare Commission's annual health check, which stipulates trusts must have a proactive approach to pest control.

"Independent inspections also show our hospital cleanliness to be "good".

"It should also be noted that we had comparatively few instances in which pest control services were required, with only 57 instances over two years across three hospitals."

"We do not believe that any of these instances posed a health risk to patients, visitors or staff."