Impressive accolade for West Suffolk Hospital catering department
The catering department at West Suffolk Hospital has been re-awarded an international accreditation in recognition of the high standards of hygiene, production, safety and service it provides to patients and visitors.
The hospital has been given the ISO 9001 -2008 standard by the LRQA following a rigorous assessment, which saw the catering team provide a raft of evidence before inspectors visited West Suffolk to look in detail at the way the department is run.
The accolade comes as the hospital launches a new menu to increase the choice available to patients. Designed jointly by the catering team and dietitians, it uses a heart symbol to indicate healthy options for people who have diabetes or are trying to lose weight, as well as pureed meals for those with difficulties eating and enriched diets for patients who need additional calories or protein.
Brodrick Pooley, catering manager at the hospital, said: “We are really pleased that we have been re-awarded the ISO standard in recognition of the high quality and safe service we provide to our patients.
“We have also been given a five star hygiene rating by the council, which should give people added confidence that not only is the food we serve nutritious and wholesome, but is also prepared using following best practice and in a clean, hygienic and safe environment.
“We pride ourselves on the quality of food we offer at West Suffolk Hospital, and regularly receive excellent feedback from our patients and visitors. This is important as making sure people can enjoy high quality, balanced and appetising meals can have a really positive impact on recovery.
“All of our food is freshly prepared on site and our catering team work hard to offer a choice which meets special dietary requirements. We are always looking for ways to improve still further, and hope the new menus will make it even easier for people to choose the meal which best suits their needs.”
West Suffolk first achieved the ISO accreditation in June 1994 and has been re-awarded it ever since. The standard lasts for three years and the hospital will be reassessed every six months to make sure it is continuing to meet the criteria.
