A retired senior Northern Health Authority official is convinced hospital food would be different if top managers ate the same food that含羞草研究社檚 served in their facilities.

含羞草研究社淩ather than health system executives feeding themselves the best catered food available at their meetings while they talk about 含羞草研究社榪uality patient-centred care,含羞草研究社� it should be a legal requirement that all of their snacks and catered lunches come directly from the local hospital exactly as it is fed to patients,含羞草研究社� wrote former chief medical health officer David Bowering in a social media post.

He says reliance on what he termed 含羞草研究社渃orporate food含羞草研究社� continues to increase and that healthy, fresh food is increasingly 含羞草研究社渂ecoming a distant memory.含羞草研究社�

含羞草研究社淭he better the hospital food gets, the better their own publicly-funded free lunches will taste. It含羞草研究社檚 called feedback,含羞草研究社� Bowering says of what health executives could be eating.

Adding to his comments in a subsequent interview, Bowering says Northern Health, like other large organizations, is increasingly relying on large food-providing corporations because of cost.

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含羞草研究社淲hat we含羞草研究社檙e seeing is more and more decisions being made by people who are more distant now from the consequences,含羞草研究社� he said.

含羞草研究社淭hey are also increasingly risk-averse,含羞草研究社� he says of large organizations such as Northern Health preferring mass-produced processed-food.

Locally-sourced food through local growers and suppliers throughout the region, however, would add to food freshness, quality and healthier options, Bowering adds.

He does acknowledge the challenges of providing food through the wide variety of Northern Health含羞草研究社檚 facilities located across a large swath of the province.

However, he says it含羞草研究社檚 not impossible 含羞草研究社� on Haida Gwaii, Northern Health patients are offered fresh-caught fish.

含羞草研究社淲hat含羞草研究社檚 needed is a long-term vision,含羞草研究社� says Bowering of an effort to marry local food with that provided by large corporations.

In response, Northern Health含羞草研究社檚 Eryn Collins says that when the authority含羞草研究社檚 executives do meet in its various facilities, their food is catered directly from the kitchens at those facilities.

含羞草研究社淪o they are eating what含羞草研究社檚 on the menu,含羞草研究社� she says.

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Collins describes health care facility food services as complex and challenging in that patient meals can depend upon individual dietary requirements tied to their individual medical conditions.

含羞草研究社淎t Mills Memorial Hospital [in Terrace], for instance, meals are prepared from scratch in their kitchens,含羞草研究社� says Collins.

含羞草研究社淭here are a variety of items prepared for each meal,含羞草研究社� she says in adding Northern Health does use food that含羞草研究社檚 been frozen.

And while Northern Health does strive to meet a provincially-mandated target that 30 per cent of the food prepared is sourced locally, Collins says the definition of 含羞草研究社榣ocal含羞草研究社� can be interpreted as food from within B.C.

含羞草研究社淲e do have challenges due to the size of the region,含羞草研究社� she notes.

Still, most recent reports indicate Northern Health含羞草研究社檚 food is now 19 per cent local, up from a previous level of 16 per cent.

含羞草研究社淲e continue to look at ways to improve within the challenges and constraints we have,含羞草研究社� says Collins.

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