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Good nursing staff but I couldn't eat the food.

Posted By keltiskatten

"Good nursing staff but I couldn't eat the food."

About: Victoria Infirmary / Trauma & orthopaedics

(as the patient),

As an inpatient both before and after orthopaedic surgery, I felt that the catering left an awful lot to be desired.

On day one, I was offered a mug of scotch broth soup. It was so salty it was inedible. That was returned untouched.

Evening meal was cauliflower cheese. The cauliflower had been cooked to the point it had no structure, and was a puddle of grey on the plate covered in a congealed sauce which was apparently cheese sauce.

Day two I refused to choose anything offered and a really good nurse offered to go down to the kitchen. She asked what I would eat and I said a piece of fresh fruit. She returned with a banana and some cheese and biscuits. Why were these items not offered to patients as a matter of course?

In a three day stay on the ward I saw food trolleys being delivered to the ward, and returned after meal times with just as much food on them uneaten.

On my discharge notes it had been marked as 'fussy eater'. I am not, I just like well presented fresh food.

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Responses

Response from John Hamilton, Head of Board Administration, Board Administration, NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde 13 years ago
We are preparing to make a change
John Hamilton
Head of Board Administration, Board Administration,
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde

Act as the Secretary to the Health Board and responsible for complaints, freedom of information requests, health board administration, lead officer for Vale of Leven Public Inquiry and responsible for Ministerial briefings and MSPs correspondence to the Chief executive

Submitted on 30/12/2011 at 14:45
Published on Care Opinion at 15:55

Thank you for providing feedback on your experience of the catering service at the Victoria Infirmary. We are sorry that you had such a poor experience with the catering offered during your hospital stay.

Patient feedback is taken very seriously by the Facilities Directorate and will be used to improve the delivery of service to patients in the future. Your comments will be provided to the Catering Production Team and Dietetics staff responsible for menu development and food production.

The Catering Manager at the Victoria Infirmary has investigated your comments and would like to apologise that you found the quality of the food to be unacceptable while you were an inpatient. The recipes used for the production of food are all quality tested within our production facilities and are nutritionally analysed by the Board's Dietetics Department to ensure that a nutritionally balanced menu is available for all patients Board wide. This includes taste testing all recipes. I am sure you will appreciate however that as a consequence of this it is difficult to cater for all patients individual likes and dislikes.

Fresh fruit should be available at every meal and can be ordered by the completion of the menu card. Biscuits and cheese along with other snacks are available on request from the ward or dietetics staff . I am sorry that this was not explained to you by local nursing staff at the time of your stay.

At the present time the Victoria Infirmary is reviewing its snack meal provision as are all other hospitals within NHSGG&C. This will widen

the range of menu options available to patients, particularly those whose appetites have been affected during their illness. This menu range has proven to be very popular on the sites that it has been piloted on to date.

Thank you for taking the time and trouble to write to Patient Opinion with your comments.

John

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