NHS Food - WTF!!
Discussion
My good lady was unfortunate enough to be Neurtopenic after her first chemo for Breast Cancer this weekend. We are lucky enough to have private health care through my work, but THEY DONT WORK WEEKENDS, so we had to admit her into the Churchill hospital in Oxford. Its very clean and new and shiny, however, its as cold as the north pole, but the main point of this post is the f
king s
t they serve up on a plate and call food!!
I was so disgusted I took a pic of it;

We are very much of the opinion that good food makes you better, but if they are serving up crap on a plate, how the hell is she supposed to get better whilst staying there?
We've all taken her food parcels, but what about the poor sods with no-one to carry in food parcels for them?
I understand that all of these new hospitals were built for "free" for the gubberment with interest payments that you could get from the local pikey money lenders, but hey talk about false economy, feed the poor patients well and they will be out of there like a shot!


I was so disgusted I took a pic of it;

We are very much of the opinion that good food makes you better, but if they are serving up crap on a plate, how the hell is she supposed to get better whilst staying there?
We've all taken her food parcels, but what about the poor sods with no-one to carry in food parcels for them?
I understand that all of these new hospitals were built for "free" for the gubberment with interest payments that you could get from the local pikey money lenders, but hey talk about false economy, feed the poor patients well and they will be out of there like a shot!
My mrs is a specialist peadeatric dietitian (but also covers adults)for the NHS, she is involved in making sure you get what you need foodwise.
The food you get will give you what you need for a recovery rate in line with that expected with whatever your treatment / ailment is.
Nothing more nothing less.
Its free, when you get home you can spend all the money you saved on beer, and in the meantime you can order pizzas etc. to be delivered to the hospital/ get someone to bring you in what you want.
When I was in St Marys for a medium term stay me and the other guys on my ward used to arrange all manner of food to be brought in by our visitors.
The food there wasn't massively appetising, but instead of moaning about it we arranged our own food.
Pick up the phone and do yourself a favour, its not going to improve any other way.
The food you get will give you what you need for a recovery rate in line with that expected with whatever your treatment / ailment is.
Nothing more nothing less.
Its free, when you get home you can spend all the money you saved on beer, and in the meantime you can order pizzas etc. to be delivered to the hospital/ get someone to bring you in what you want.
When I was in St Marys for a medium term stay me and the other guys on my ward used to arrange all manner of food to be brought in by our visitors.
The food there wasn't massively appetising, but instead of moaning about it we arranged our own food.
Pick up the phone and do yourself a favour, its not going to improve any other way.
I kind of agree with the pair of you, but how would you feel if it was your mum/sister/nan and you were too far away to help? My point was that these silly f
kers are spending far too much making the place look shiny for visiting dignitarys and forgetting the basics, like; Good food heals!. Lucie is going to come out of here treated medically, but lacking in real nutrition, which is really going to help her get better!

Slyjoe said:
I kind of agree with the pair of you, but how would you feel if it was your mum/sister/nan and you were too far away to help? My point was that these silly f
kers are spending far too much making the place look shiny for visiting dignitarys and forgetting the basics, like; Good food heals!. Lucie is going to come out of here treated medically, but lacking in real nutrition, which is really going to help her get better!
I guess that meal is lacking a bit in nutrients, should have some vegetables somewhere...
I've been in for three (relatively minor) operations on the NHS in the last two months. Each time has required general anaesthetic, so have been in overnight on two occasions. I thought the food was quite nice on the whole. Not exactly gourmet, but was nutritious enough and seemed of decent quality. Certainly better than airline food. Even got to choose from a relatively varied menu. I imagine the quality is quite dependent on the trust where you're treated and what company has the catering contract.
In fact the whole NHS experience was infinitely better than I expected. We have private, but as the operations were 'acute' it was irrelevant as I'd have had to be referred and it would've taken too long. Aside from the waiting around for the surgical team to become available and not having the private room to recover in afterwards, the NHS was absolutely no different than the private care I've had in the past...
In fact the whole NHS experience was infinitely better than I expected. We have private, but as the operations were 'acute' it was irrelevant as I'd have had to be referred and it would've taken too long. Aside from the waiting around for the surgical team to become available and not having the private room to recover in afterwards, the NHS was absolutely no different than the private care I've had in the past...
Spent a few nights at Kingston a while back. No complaints from me. Staff were polite and attentive, food was acceptable, toilets were clean (well, once I told someone that the guy opposite with explosive diarrhoea had had a party in the toilet). What more could I want? Some of the nurses and doctors were hotties, too.
shouldbworking said:
Damn it. A work e-mail stopped me posting this before you!Hopefully your wife's hospital has given her a booklet explaining all about her chemo and also foods that should be avoided.
Someone has suggested taking in pizza etc a big no - no.
The booklet provided by the Oncology Department in Suffolk I attended states.
Food safety and Neutropenia.
General food safety guidelines while you are Neutropenic,
.Wash hands before handling food.
.Do not allow chilled foods to become warm.
.Do not re-heat leftovers
.Be extra cautious when using a microwave. Follow cooking instructions precisely.
.No take-aways.
.Wipe tops of cans before opening and do not drink directly from the can or bottle.
.Wash and peel fruit before eating.
Some foods are known to have a high risk of carrying infections and these should be avoided.
.Pate.
.Soft cheeses e.g Brie, Camembert.
.Blue cheeses e.g Danish Blue, Blue Cheshire.
.Ripened cheeses e.g Stilton.
.Sheep's and Goat's cheese.
.Raw farm milk.
.Uncooked eggs e.g home made mayo, eggs wih soft yolks after cooking..Live yohurts..Ice cream from ice cream vans and soft whip machines.
.Shellfish e.g prawns, shrimps, crabs, cockles.
.Pre-prepared salad vegatables e.g bags of lettuce, watercress etc.
.Commercial salad bar products e.g open cartons of coleslaw,potato salad, Chose sealed cartons.
.Delicatessen foods e.g sausage rolls, pasties.
.Pepper - can be used in cooking but not sprinkled onto foods.
.NON-carbonated bottled water.
---------------------------------------------
Could a member of your family or neighbour take your wife a flask of home made soup each day. My hushand did it for me when I was in hospital for 11 days and could not eat solids.
Good luck to you and your wife.
Edited for spelling.
Someone has suggested taking in pizza etc a big no - no.
The booklet provided by the Oncology Department in Suffolk I attended states.
Food safety and Neutropenia.
General food safety guidelines while you are Neutropenic,
.Wash hands before handling food.
.Do not allow chilled foods to become warm.
.Do not re-heat leftovers
.Be extra cautious when using a microwave. Follow cooking instructions precisely.
.No take-aways.
.Wipe tops of cans before opening and do not drink directly from the can or bottle.
.Wash and peel fruit before eating.
Some foods are known to have a high risk of carrying infections and these should be avoided.
.Pate.
.Soft cheeses e.g Brie, Camembert.
.Blue cheeses e.g Danish Blue, Blue Cheshire.
.Ripened cheeses e.g Stilton.
.Sheep's and Goat's cheese.
.Raw farm milk.
.Uncooked eggs e.g home made mayo, eggs wih soft yolks after cooking..Live yohurts..Ice cream from ice cream vans and soft whip machines.
.Shellfish e.g prawns, shrimps, crabs, cockles.
.Pre-prepared salad vegatables e.g bags of lettuce, watercress etc.
.Commercial salad bar products e.g open cartons of coleslaw,potato salad, Chose sealed cartons.
.Delicatessen foods e.g sausage rolls, pasties.
.Pepper - can be used in cooking but not sprinkled onto foods.
.NON-carbonated bottled water.
---------------------------------------------
Could a member of your family or neighbour take your wife a flask of home made soup each day. My hushand did it for me when I was in hospital for 11 days and could not eat solids.
Good luck to you and your wife.
Edited by Mrs Muttleysnoop on Monday 9th November 20:06
Edited for spelling.
Edited by Mrs Muttleysnoop on Monday 9th November 20:08
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