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Care Opinion

Overnight stay after surgery

Posted By horologiumnd67

"Overnight stay after surgery"

About: Sutherland Hospital

(as the patient),

I had an operation in the afternoon. I was woken by a lovely nurse in recovery and was being sent to a ward to stay overnight. I had been fasting since 7am it was now 6.30pm. I told the nurse I was hungry and she said I would be fed on the ward. I arrived there and there was no meal or sandwich available. I was given 2 crackers and a piece of cheese and bottle of water. 

I woke through the night with hunger pangs and by morning was ravenous, as I had not eaten for 24 hours. My breakfast had been ordered the night before by a nurse with no discussion with me nor did she check if I had specific dietary requirements. Much to my serious disappointment, breakfast was a pack of weetbix and a slice of white bread, neither of which I can eat as I’m wheat free! The nurse rang the kitchen at 7.30 to be told there was nothing available except custard and jelly. I think this is appalling that a meal after surgery and a choice for breakfast is so difficult to arrange. It should be a simple and better system to implement, giving patient care and satisfaction 

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Responses

Response from Valerie Jovanovic, General Manager, General Manager's Unit, The Sutherland Hospital 5 years ago
Valerie Jovanovic
General Manager, General Manager's Unit,
The Sutherland Hospital

Submitted on 16/01/2019 at 11:19 AM
Published on Care Opinion at 12:20 PM

Hi horologiumnd67

Thank you for your email about your recent stay in the Sutherland Hospital and for your feedback regarding the Recovery Nurse. Your experience in relation to your meals was not a positive one and I can understand how you would have been feeling very hungry following the length of time you mentioned. I am sure that I would have been feeling the same.

The kitchen at the hospital functions via an ordering system. The challenge with this is in the time of day the meals are ordered, which sometimes results in newly admitted patients receiving what is termed a “default meal”. When patients arrive on a ward during the later part of the day, efforts are made to provide sandwiches and pantry items. Your breakfast, however, should have been in line with your dietary requirements if wheat was recorded as an allergy on your medical record. I apologise this did not happen, and I very much appreciate your frustration at receiving a meal you could not eat.

As I read your feedback, I can see opportunities for the hospital to constructively consider and implement improved processes to ensure the provision of appropriate meals to patients at all times. This may include the opportunity for patients to order a meal pre-operatively for those who require a special dietary requirement.

Once again, I thank you for your feedback as it has provided me and the hospital the opportunity to review our processes and identify areas requiring improvement.

Kind regards

Valerie Jovanovic

General Manager

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