Millions of NHS patients and staff will benefit from tastier, healthier and better-quality meals following an independent review of hospital food
Millions of NHS patients and staff will benefit from tastier, healthier and better-quality meals following an independent review of hospital food, led by a panel of advisers including chef and restaurateur Prue Leith.
Published today, the review makes recommendations on how NHS trusts can prioritise food safety and provide more nutritious meals to both staff and patients.
The government has today announced it will establish an expert group of NHS caterers, dietitians and nurses to take forward the recommendations made in the report and decide on next steps. These include:
Matt Hancock, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, said:
Restaurateur, celebrity chef and television presenter Prue Leith CBE, said:
Recruitment has now begun for the expert group led by the review’s chair, former head of the Hospital Caterers Association and catering lead for Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, Philip Shelley.
Philip Shelley, chair of the hospital food review, said:
Philip Shelley and Prue Leith visited catering managers, staff and patients across the country, looking at best practice from those leading the way in NHS food quality and innovation. The findings of the hospital food review echo many of the themes in both the government’s recently published Obesity Strategy and part one of the National Food Strategy.
This includes the importance of healthy, nutritious and tasty food for physical health and wellbeing; how COVID-19 has highlighted the need to improve the nation’s dietary health; and the need to also focus on our culture around food, not just on the food itself.
High-quality hospital food can improve staff wellbeing and speed up patient recovery.
While 58% of patients rate hospital food as very good or good, 39% of hospital staff feel that food and catering facilities offered in their workplaces were poor. (Source: NHS England, 2018 National NHS Staff Survey in England, 2019.)
With over 140 million meals served to NHS patients every year, and a further 1.25 million members of staff that require nourishing food and drink on shift, the review highlights the importance of improving both patient and staff satisfaction even further.
Henry Dimbleby, co-founder of Leon Restaurants and independent lead on the National Food Strategy, said:
Following an outbreak of listeriosis in 2019, the Health Secretary of State announced this ‘root and branch’ review of food served and sold in hospitals.
Today’s report makes recommendations for system level change, covering staff, nutrition and hydration, food safety, facilities, technology, sustainability and enforcing standards. The recommendations aim to ensure every NHS catering supplier, worker and contractor is meeting the highest standards to prevent foodborne infection and keep patients safe.
This includes training hospital workers, including ‘non-catering’ staff such as nurses, on food hygiene matters relevant to their work, and ensuring suppliers uphold Food Safety Association and Public Health England standards.
The review also contains a checklist for catering managers and chief executives with the key principles of providing a good food service.
Many of the recommendations can be implemented now, at no additional cost. The government also recently announced a £3.7 billion fund to deliver 40 hospitals across England by 2030 which will include a focus on 21st-century catering facilities including restaurants, central kitchens, patient dining spaces and ward kitchens.
Rob Percival, Head of Food Policy at the Soil Association, said:
Chief Executive, Rachel Power, The Patients Association, said:
Background Information
The hospital food review panel completed its research, fieldwork and report between September 2019 and March 2020.
The median spend per NHS patient meal is £4.56, exceeding the budget of meals offered by other public services.
Recommendations
The review makes the following 8 recommendations to improve staff and patient health and wellbeing through hospital food:
Case Studies
St Bernard’s Hospital (West London NHS Trust) has developed tailored sessions for dietitians to teach patients the principles of good nutrition so that they can apply them to their own diet. Many of its patients did not have much nutritional knowledge and a high proportion were at risk of obesity-related health problems.
Broadmoor Hospital (West London NHS Trust) has staff kitchens on each ward with a microwave and toaster. The staff restaurant is very popular and serves mostly the same food as is served to patients, but on a different menu cycle. They have been trying to make staff options healthier, while still giving people choice.
Frimley Park Hospital (Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust) runs teams of ‘dinnertime companions’ who are there to provide social companionship to long-stay patients as well as to support patients who may need a little bit of help with eating.
Musgrove Park Hospital (Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust) have seasonal menus as they have the added benefit of promoting local procurement, along with reducing food miles and air pollution. Local and seasonal food can have substantial environmental benefits, while local procurement and employment provide social and economic benefits.
The Chest Pain Unit at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust is very well set out, providing food for several community sites at an excellent standard. Safety standards are high and the standard operating procedures and processes onsite are ingrained into the food safety management system.