
Wednesday, 3rd September 2008 - 18:53CET
Ministry stops hospital staff food service
The Social Policy Ministry has instructed the Mater Dei Hospital management to stop the staff food service.
The order came after a nurse last Monday reported finding part of the head of a mouse while eating vegetables at the hospital canteen.
The ministry said that following consultation with the unions, staff will start getting an allowance for food.







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One should also consider doing away with perks such as company and corporation cars plus fuel and giving out a monetary allowance to eligible employees instead. This would help reduce car fuel waste and traffic congestion as well as enhance road safety and air quality.
Casual observation shows that workers who have free company cars and fuel tend to use their cars even when they could just as effectively use public transport or walk. Besides, many such perk beneficiaries tend to leave the car engine running while waiting for somebody and/or queuing at a cash dispensing machine – even if this is against the law as well as a safety hazard - since the monetary cost of the wasted fuel does not seem to cross their minds because their own purses are not effected. Unfortunately, several people consider practically nothing else apart from their own money in their own pocket/bank account.
Ministers should consider this idea and not bow to pressure from car importers and car hire companies who presently rent out cars to government corporations and departments.
She has her premium to cover for it!
Also, if I purchase, say a DVD player, which ends up malfunctioning after a few months, I will take my complaint to my local supplier... I don't care where the equipment came from or who supplied it to my reseller. I will not be referred to some factory in China, but rather expect my local supplier to replace the equipment. In the same way, govt. should disregard the foreign food supplier, because the people it contracted for the job were local. They should be held accountable, and in turn, if they choose to, the caterers should sue their supplier for damages.
Customers who are made ill /traumatised /injured by said product recieve compensation.
The fact that the product hasn't been named leads me to believe that they only suspect this packet of frozen veg. to be the source and have mentioned it to distance blame from the catering company.
If they were a 100% sure said packet of frozen veg. was the source they would have named the product, or I hope they would have 'cause sometimes I have doubts about whether things are ever done in the correct way.
It was mentioned that the Catering company stopped any order of said product but did they inform this company of the actual reason. To be honest I think it was very irresponsible to mention said packet of frozen veg., when there is no proof, because most households have frozen veg in their fridge.
I never experienced a mouse in my food late but I did experience cockroaches in my mouth from a soft drinks bottle. I was so upset that I almost throttled the PR officer of the company concerned when he tried to soft talk me.
As things stand this same caterer enjoys a monopoly with a very lucrative market. There is no other food outlet within hospital or in the range of a kilometer (is it true that the same caterer also runs the university canteen?).
The prices charged are astronomical and the quality..... well judge for yourselves..
I would like to know which is the packing company to make sure I do not have any of their products in my freezer!
Finally the food service is being stopped!
The food options at the canteen were not too inviting, neither the choices -
eg. for breakfast - after a 24hr shift, and another few hrs of work left - one had to chose between either a piece of cake or a stale sandwich or a glass of water/orange - what a choice! Then either tea/coffee.
In the evening, a sandwich is also given to night staff - always on the day of expiry!
I wonder how much the caterer is being paid for such a service!
I bring my own food to eat, more variety, tastier etc.
Allowance is a good compromise!
I am not a nurse and have nothing to do with hospital staff, but seeing the care that most nurses and staff give to the patients I feel that such comments are uncalled for.
What if it had been you who found the mouse's head in your salad?
This was the most logical action to take. It will not only give the nurses the freedom to choose where to buy their lunch from but also save taxpayer money by eliminating the need to administer the purchase of food.