Epworth HealthCare has become Australia’s first healthcare organisation to achieve an international standard for its hospital kitchen.
Epworth Richmond has received the international ISO 22000:2018 rating for its food safety management system. To achieve this rating, an organisation needs to demonstrate an ability to control food safety hazards, ensuring that the food produced onsite is safe.
Epworth Richmond Executive General Manager Allison Evans said achieving the rating demonstrates a strong commitment to be an industry leader in food safety.
“Epworth is renowned for our patient care and renowned for our restaurant-quality food, which can be ordered on-demand from the Point of Care screens in each patient’s room,” Ms Evans said.
“Achieving ISO22000 accreditation was a two-year process requiring a ‘whole of organisation’ approach to food safety to set up a detailed risk management process. That process can then be used to implement new food services across other Epworth hospitals.”
Epworth Richmond recently underwent a two-day audit to receive ISO22000 certification.
Group Director Hospitality Services Nazim Bayrak said seven ‘Areas of Excellence’ were identified where Epworth not only met the stringent ISO criteria, but provided evidence of excellent practice.
“The audit recognised excellence in the cleanliness of the kitchen, quality of the preparation and cooking utensils, our storage area, labelling, food safety documentation and our maintenance,” Mr Bayrak said.
“All of that means that our patients and their families can have confidence in the quality of the 1.2-million meals we serve at Epworth Richmond each year.”
Epworth Richmond kitchen facts
Each year, the kitchen at Epworth Richmond prepares 1.2 million meals using:
- 90,000 loaves of bread
- 78,000 litres of milk
- 33,000 kg of beef
- 33,000 kg of apples
- 18,000 kg of potatoes
