Page 3060 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 5 December 1989
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Mr Berry: The answer to Mr Humphries' question is as follows:
(1) Hospital catering areas require some flexibility to be able to produce unanticipated extra patient meals associated with emergency admissions and transfers. For this reason, forward planning of catering requirements normally includes a margin. This margin however is not in the order of ten per cent. It is in fact estimated to be five per cent or less.
(2) As stated above, the margin is not ten per cent, but is estimated to be five per cent or less.
(3) Royal Canberra Hospital provides a margin to accommodate admissions and transfers taking place at any time during a 24 hour period. Like Woden Valley Hospital, this margin is estimated to be five per cent or less.
Calvary Hospital purchases food from a contractor who would also operate within a contingency margin. I am unaware of the level of the margin operating at Calvary Hospital. It is common practice to allow a margin to ensure all requirements are accommodated, including allowances for late admissions.
(4) I believe that our hospitals operate on a similar basis to public hospitals in other States.
(5) A two per cent margin could not be considered normal or desirable as hospital catering areas require more flexibility than this margin would give to be able to respond to all requirements, including late admissions and transfers.
(6) It is inevitable that there will be some wastage in any hospital system, due to unforeseeable demands on the catering area. At Woden Valley and Royal Canberra Hospitals, approximately two per cent of food is determined to be wastage. This figure includes trimmings and meals returned.
I am unaware of the level of food wastage at Calvary Hospital.
(7) Catering arrangements at Woden Valley and Royal Canberra Hospitals are the subject of ongoing assessment.
As a Budget initiative, a Food Services Working Group was set up to implement the Government's proposal to evaluate food services in both Royal Canberra and Woden Valley Hospitals. The Group is currently identifying areas of productivity improvements in both hospitals. I have received and will continue to receive briefs from that Working Group.
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