BMC takes steps to enhance nutritional quality of hospital meals

Mumbai: In a first, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has directed its team of doctors and dieticians to visit private or charitable hospitals in the city with the aim of improving the nutritional quality of meals provided to patients receiving care in civic-run hospitals. The visit, which will commence next week, will also entail studying the process that is followed by these hospitals to deliver diet or nutritious food to their patients.

Last week, Dr Sudhakar Shinde, the additional municipal commissioner held a special meeting of dieticians of all major and peripheral hospitals to acknowledge patient grievances related to improper meal delivery and tepid food.

“Food plays a key role in the recovery of patients and our paramount objective is to furnish patients with high-quality, nourishing meals,” said Dr Shinde. “When it comes to supplying food to patients, there are a few things that need to be addressed. First is delivering warm food. In many hospitals, food tends to get cold by the time it travels from the kitchen to the patient. The second important thing was to figure out if we can provide the required nutrition to our patients.”

To this effect, dieticians have been entrusted with the vital responsibility of assessing the quality of food items such as vegetables, grains, pulses, rice, and chapatis provided to patients in private hospitals. “Visits to esteemed medical facilities like Tata Memorial Hospital, P.D. Hinduja Hospital, and Lilavati Hospital have been encouraged to gain better insights,” he said.

The directive entails a comprehensive assessment of dietary practices and nourishment provisions within private and charitable hospitals across Mumbai, a report of which will be submitted to the additional municipal commissioner in the next few weeks.

Dr Shinde also said his team will also study vegetable and other raw material sourcing methods in private and government hospitals. “The team spoke about challenges posed by fluctuating vegetable supplies, disrupting the adherence to weekly dietary plans. To tackle this, suppliers will be expected to provide fresh, high-quality vegetables consistently,” he said.

BMC has also decided to look at the shortage of dieticians at civic-run hospitals and plans to fill them by hiring on a contractual basis. Recently KEM Hospital-Parel-one of the four tertiary care hospitals run by BMC had revamped its kitchen and food delivery process. Its team visited ISKCON’s Byculla kitchen and adopted their kitchen policy by investing in specialised thermal containers, replacing the outdated aluminium ones buying advanced kitchen equipment and changing chimneys.

Appreciating the efforts taken by BMC, Zamurrud Patel, president of the Indian Dietetic Association (Mumbai Chapter) said all public hospitals’ kitchens should have a better design and kitchen policy.

“A well-designed kitchen is essential for providing nutritious meals to patients in public hospitals. By embracing modern amenities, we can ensure patients receive the best care,” she said.