Fit to Eat

A new survey from CLIC Sargent reveals parents are concerned that children are not eating food provided on children’s cancer wards. Standards of the food vary hugely across the UK. Parents report unsuitable and unappetising food which is served in the wrong place, at the wrong time which means their children are struggling to eat regular and nutritional meals. 

On Tuesday 3 June, as part of the Fit to Eat campaign, three young people with cancer will deliver new guidelines to the Department of Health and ask the Secretary of State, Alan Johnson and all NHS Trusts to introduce dedicated food champions on every children’s cancer ward. This could be an on-ward chef, housekeeper or ward helper, who gets to know the child, their likes and dislikes and encouraging them to eat the right food when they want it.

“Urgent action is needed to ensure that the NHS is meeting the specific food needs of children and young people with cancer”, explains CLIC Sargent’s Chief Executive Dr Carole Easton. “It is hard enough for a parent to see their child critically ill – they should not be faced with the added concern of seeing their offered food that is not fit to eat.”

Easton continues: “No parent should be compelled to bring in their own food due to the poor quality being provided on the ward.  Hospitals should be offering a good choice of foods that meet the children’s food preference or help with the common side effects of treatment and making it available around the clock.”

CLIC Sargent also finds that the quality of food can make a significant impact on a child’s response to treatment and recovery. Professor Mike Stevens, CLIC Sargent Professor of Paediatric Oncology at the University of Bristol, says: “Good nutrition is really important for children undergoing treatment for cancer: it helps them to feel better during treatment and is a significant factor in keeping up their immunity against infections. I can see the difference in children on the wards who have been able to maintain their intake of good food.”

Both the Department of Health and the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) have introduced standards to help hospitals meet the nutritional needs of children and young people with cancer.  However, many NHS Trusts are not meeting these guidelines. The new guidelines being introduced by CLIC Sargent draw together available best practice into one document and offer practical ideas for Trusts on how to meet existing standards.

Hospital food is a major cause of stress for families caring for a child in hospital.  Many are struggling with the extra cost of providing their own food. Alarmingly, almost all the parents surveyed (over 70%) resort to bringing in food for their child adding to their weekly food bills.  This extra expense is proving to be crippling for families already struggling to meet the extra costs of caring for a child with cancer.

CLIC Sargent wants all hospitals to provide food in a flexible and responsive way which is age appropriate, nutritious and appetising. Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, a major centre for the treatment of childhood cancer, has shown how an NHS Trusts can be innovative, meet the needs of children and at no extra cost. By providing a dedicated cook who works on the ward, children can eat what they want when they want it.

For a media briefing and to find out more about the campaign please visit the Fit to Eat campaign pages.

Notes to Editor:

• For more information please contact Zoe Grumbridge at the CLIC Sargent Press Office on 020 8752 2833 or email: zoe.grumbridge@clicsargent.org.uk