On the 28th November, the HSE and the Irish Heart Foundation hosted a “Celebration of Excellence in Catering event” at the Gibson Hotel, Dublin. This is part of the work of the Healthy Eating Active Living programme on improving the food environment across the health services. The Irish Heart Foundation and the HSE have been working together to create healthier work environments in healthcare settings for over 25 years.
The event proceeded with an afternoon of learning and sharing, focussing on food sustainability and staff personal health and wellbeing.
John Swords, National Director for Procurement in the HSE, spoke about “supporting the transition to more sustainable food procurement” as part of the HSE Climate Action Strategy (2023-2050) which includes a strategic objective to develop a procured goods and services waste reduction framework and implementation plan.
This was followed by a presentation on ‘Making Meals Matter – Providing a Sustainable Solution – Sustainability “Proof of Concept” Project’, hosted in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital on a 42 bed ward to minimise food wastage and optimise patient experience.
Sarah McCormack spoke about how the HSE is prioritising the building of healthy workplaces and supporting staff to adopt positive lifestyle behaviours through the use of resources and toolkits.
The afternoon session concluded with David Gillick, Olympian, author and health advocate, speaking about “running through uncertainty” and his journey into rebuilding his connection with himself, his identity and creating his personal resilience toolbox to help him negotiate change.
The evening continued with the Happy Heart Healthy Eating Awards ceremony with 21 healthcare sites honoured for their commitment to improving the food environment and healthy food choices on their menus for staff and visitors.
Of the 21 award winners, who provide healthy meals for almost 18,000 health service employees, 15 achieved gold status for creating a healthier food environment, 2 received silver awards and 4 received bronze.
In total 51 sites currently hold awards, supporting the health of almost 45,000 healthcare staff. The awards programme continues to grow and together the HSE and Irish Heart Foundation are working to increase the number of sites achieving gold status.