Human Cutaneous Myiasis by the Australian Sheep Blowfly,Lucilia cuprina (Diptera: Calliphoridae), in Oklahoma

This case report describes an incident of myiasis in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Paramedics treated a 53‐year‐old man in the field when he suffered cardiac arrest. He was intubated by the paramedics and transported to an emergency room, where he received two stents and a balloon pump. He was found to have a GCS of three and remained in the hospital for 7 days before passing away. After his death, the breathing tube was removed, revealing the presence of several maggots. On closer inspection, the dipteran larvae were found in both the oral and nasal cavities. Four of these larvae were reared to adulthood and identified as Lucilia cuprina (Weidemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), commonly known as the Australian sheep blowfly, by the Biology Department of the University of Oklahoma. Based on the fly's life cycle and rate of development, the infestation is suspected to be hospital acquired.     

Ethics in the workplace

The right to request flexible working has been introduced into the UK employment laws against a background of post-fordist work practices, which already allow for employer rather than employee flexibility. This paper posits the idea that for the individual employee to benefit from these new rights what is required is the situation of dialogues within the workplace that take place in an ethical frame that recognises the employee as an individual.