As an expert in tropical pest management, ORIGIN is lending our expertise to this
campaign firstly by providing our detection dog services for the beneficiaries. Sparky the bed bug detection dog is specially trained to sniff out bed bugs; something he does with speed and accuracy. Bed bugs have a distinctive scent, which Sparky has been trained to hone in upon. Catching bed bug infestations at an early stage helps to increase the success rate of eradicating them completely from a location as late stage infestations have high populations of the bed bugs, which results in the pests hiding in cracks and crevices that cannot be efficiently treated. Once Sparky has pinpointed the hiding location of bed bugs within a room, a professional pest control operator can then follow up with a treatment.
Additionally, ORIGIN is also helping out with the public education aspect of the campaign, by conducting training sessions for the volunteers in order to prepare them for the logistics and precautions they need to follow whilst helping the beneficiaries with the various pre and post treatment procedures needed. ORIGIN is also helping to conduct the educational seminars to educate the beneficiaries about bed bugs, their biology, associated myths, how to find an infestation, and precautions to prevent them from being transported into their homes. Furthermore, ORIGIN is helping in the design and creation of educational pamphlets, which will be disseminated to residents so that the educational message of the campaign creates a lasting impression, and helps to change habits so as to prevent reinfestations from taking place.
Next, ORIGIN will contribute to this campaign by involving staff and their families as volunteers in this campaign, to help with the on-the-ground logistics. This is part of the company’s efforts to empower staff to be changemakers by encouraging volunteerism, especially for them to spread this to their own circles of influence.
Finally, ORIGIN is contributing to the campaign by consulting on the planning and execution of the actual inspections and treatments, as well as taking part in the planning process for the logistics, processes as well as helping to bring other corporate partners on board. Through this campaign, ORIGIN hopes to kick off initiatives for MNCs to work with SMEs on CSR projects, giving rise to more vibrancy in amongst local companies with interests to be responsible and sustainable in their business.
Importance of inspection
A large part of the work to be carried out would be the pre and post treatment inspections. This is key to responsible and effective bed bug eradication. Before treatment, it is necessary to locate the areas of infestation, so that the treatment can be targeted at the specific spots. It also eliminates the need for blanket applications of pesticide, thus avoiding the excessive use of pesticides. Post treatment, it is also important to carry out a thorough inspection again, to ensure that the bedbugs have been completely eradicated, and no survivors are left to propagate another infestation.
Purpose of campaignThe Stop Pest Community Project was initiated with the aim of eradicating bed bugs, starting from a pilot block in Chin Swee Road; in the heart of Chinatown. This eradication entails carrying out of thorough inspections and treatments for the residents’ premises, as well as education on the pest and preventive measures for the residents, in order to prevent recurring infestations. The main objective is to ensure that the burgeoning bed bug problem in the area is solved, so that residents can have an uninterrupted night’s sleep, and avoid the trauma of a bed bug infestation, because no one deserves to live with these pests.
Campaign objectives:
· Carry out proper treatment to completely eradicate bedbugs
· Educate residents about bedbugs
· Ensure that problem does not recur by conducting a public education campaign to change habits and mindsets about bedbugs
Overview of problem in Singapore
The bed bug problem in Singapore is a fast growing one, given that bed bugs spread via transportation when they are brought into homes via items such as luggage and second hand furniture. Given this fact, the one room flat occupants are at particularly high risk of getting hit with this problem as many of them have the habit of accumulating second hand items such as furniture and clothing. Further to that, the effective management of a bed bug infestation requires fast action on early stage infestation, and this requires financial resources that these one room flat occupants might not have. As such, many of them end up living with the problem until the infestation becomes severe. This causes severe trauma given that sufferers of a bed bug infestation can end up with tens and hundreds of itchy bites each night, causing disrupted sleep. However, many of them cannot afford professional treatment, and instead turn to traditional methods which are not only ineffective against today’s bed bugs, but may also cause a fire hazard, such as the usage of kerosene to treat the bedsheets. As such, there is a need to help these one room flat occupants eradicate their bed bug problem. Furthermore, extensive efforts in public education is needed to help change behavioural habits that lead to the spread of bed bugs.
