Hospital Food

One of the more interesting programmes I've watched on TV recently - was the one about NHS hospital food made by the celebrity chef - James Martin.

James seemed to have been moved by the experience of his grandmother in hospital - which was poor, he said - for someone who loved her food.

So the star of Saturday Kitchen persuaded Scarborough General Hospital - to have a long hard look at how they were doing things - and learn a trick of two from people whose skills lay outside the public sector.

And what do you know - James made a big difference - abandoning frozen vegetables and packet soups for fresh ingredients wherever possible - and within a few months a revolution had taken place. 

The bit I liked best was the scene where nutritionist is consulted about dietary content of the meals - because without her say so nothing could be approved.

Yet she seemed to have no clue about the amount of frozen ingredients and additives going into patients' meals - or the fact that around 40% of what the kitchen produced went straight into the bin.

James Martin has done us all a bit of a service - by exposing the cant and hypocrisy surrounding the NHS.

Which leads me on to John Rentoul who wrote and interesting article in the Independent the other day - about the difficulties of achieving change in the NHS - under any government.

Here's how he analyses the politics of change in the health service and why reforms always run into a predictable storm of protest - from various vested interest groups.   

"Why, then, is it so unpopular? To answer this question you have to understand the politics of the NHS. This rests on these axioms.

One, everyone loves the NHS.

Two, everyone agrees that the NHS must be run more efficiently, to keep up with rising costs, the ageing population and, now, the slower planned growth in NHS spending.

Three, any changes that impinge on the interests of people who work in the NHS will be condemned as privatisation, especially if they are nothing of the sort.

Four, everyone will agree that this is the end of the UK as a civilised society/enough to make Nye Bevan spin in his grave/quite simply a disgrace.

Five, the media will move on and eventually start again at step one."

Quite so - and what always makes me laugh is that GPs are often the first to raise the spectre of 'privatisation' - as a rallying call to block and frustrate change.

Yet GPs are all self-employed and always have been - they're not even willing to be employed by the NHS in the same way as other staff - which strikes me as more than a bit strange.

But back to hospital food - which is dreary and depressing in my experience - as is the fact that people have put up with it for so long.

James Martin showed what can be done with a bit of inspiration and thinking outside the box.

Just because the NHS is a public service - doesn't mean it has to be second rate, dull and boring.