Thanks to an innovative partnership between its contract catering provider Sodexo and ‘unattended retail expert’ SV365 Technologies Royal Stoke has successfully launched the first automated food and drink machine to supply staff and visitors round-the-clock.
Situated alongside the hospital’s restaurant and staff rest area, the 24/7 Deli offers 55 food items and 15 hot drink items sourced from small and medium enterprises – all with sustainability ‘at the centre of the offering’.
The Trust’s action has been in response to the new standards for food and drink in healthcare that were published in November 2022 following the Independent Review of Hospital Food in 2020, chaired by Philip Shelley.
The review lists eight standards for hospital food for patients, staff and visitors, including a requirement that staff and visitors have access to a range of healthy food day and night.
To meet this new standard at Royal Stoke its catering partner Sodexo teamed up with SV365 to develop the new service provision, which first went live in April and has since been formally launched.
Simon Lilley, director of strategy and marketing in health and care for Sodexo UK and Ireland, said: “We were honoured to have been part of the working group which developed the new National Healthcare Food & Drink Standards, and although the focus is rightly on improving the wellbeing and recovery of patients it is just as important to do the same for those caring for them.
“Nutrition is a key part of our expertise, and this new, automated retail solution will ensure we can play our part every day, by serving a selection of hot and cold food around the clock for frontline teams, visitors and patients.
“It also critically builds on our focus of increasing support for SMEs – 57% of the products we buy in the UK are from SMEs, and now through the 24/7 Deli again we are finding another channel for smaller specialist suppliers to work with Sodexo – it’s something we are very proud of. Together with unattended retail experts, SV365 Technologies, we developed this solution and in late April the new offer went live at the hospital.
“Since then it has been proving popular with hospital staff and visitors, who now having access to fresh, nutritious hot and cold food options throughout the day and night.”
He said Sodexo Health & Care provided 5.2m meals a year across 53 hospitals and it continuously reviewed and evolved its offers to support NHS Trusts and other healthcare providers in meeting the new standards.
“Sodexo is the first provider in the UK to offer this ground-breaking automated retail solution and is looking forward to sharing its success with other NHS Trusts,” he adds.
As a result of this pioneering work, the Royal Stoke University Hospital is now leading the way in addressing this standard by providing its staff and visitors with a wide menu of fresh food and drink round the clock.
Tim Radcliffe, Net Zero Food Programme Manager for NHS England and co-chair of the Expert Panel focusing on 24/7 feeding for NHS Staff recently visited Royal Stoke Hospital and said this of the new 24/7 Deli there: “The new standards aim to improve the quality, nutritional value and sustainability of our hospital catering services, while also addressing the experience and environment in which food is consumed.
“A key imperative is that staff working long, busy shifts in hospitals have access to good quality food and this new Deli does just that. It has created an oasis area for staff to come and have a sit down at 2am after a busy session to enjoy some delicious food and downtime away from the ward. It’s fantastic to see the difference it is making to the team at the hospital.”
Tracy Bullock, chief executive of the University Hospital of North Midlands NHS Trust adds: “It’s always great to be the first in the country to do something and we are the first Trust in the country to have these Deli machines.
“One of our key objectives as a Trust is the wellbeing of staff and we know that they have been through a difficult number of years, and so one of the key things we want to make sure of is that our staff can access nutritious hot food 24/7, seven days a week throughout the whole of the year and we’ve now got that facility to enable that. I’ve received very positive feedback in terms of the quality of the food; it does come out piping hot and staff are pleased with it.”
Catering for all needs
The hot drink offer is provided by Change Please, a social enterprise which invests all of its profits to provide homeless people with housing, training and a living wage. Currently offering 18 options for barista coffee, loose leaf tea and hot chocolate, the customer is able to tailor their drink to their taste.
For example they can select the strength of the coffee they choose. The machine also allows the customer to use their own cup and has a low energy consumption. Alberts uses robotics technology that prepares popular blends for fresh smoothies, hot soups & vegan shakes.
Customers can choose from popular choices or by using Aberts app they can customise their choice. The machine uses frozen ingredients which retain the nutrients in the fruit or vegetable and minimises waste. A unique smoothie machine enables the customer to choose from six popular flavours or if they prefer they can create their own option.
Hot meals are available in a matter of minutes, thanks to the infrared and microwaves built into the machines. Among the options available are popular items such as stone-baked pizzas and crispy fries as well as main meals including:
• chicken paella
• sweet potato and spinach korma
• smokey chipotle meatballs
• roasted aubergine in creole sauce
• jerk chicken with rice & peas
• Mauritian chicken curry
• French beef stew
The hot meal options are sourced from Field Doctor (Somerset) which provides dietitian-designed, chef-prepared frozen meals and African and Caribbean specialist meal provider Coco Labelle, with a comprehensive range of popular bakery items supplied by Jake & Nayns.
Also available are sweet and savoury bakery goods and ice desserts. Dishes include allergen-free, healthy choices, halal, vegetarian and vegan options.
The meals on offer can be tailored to suit a hospital’s site population and any particular dietary requirements.
Royal Stoke’s Deli is proving popular with 35% of sales occurring during the 8pm to 8am period and 25% over the traditional lunchtime hours of 1pm -3pm.
Royal Stoke University Hospital, part of University Hospitals North Midlands NHS Trust, is a teaching and research hospital at Hartshill in Staffordshire and is one of the largest hospitals in the country. It employs more than 6,000 staff, has 1,328 beds and is a major local employer.