York eating disorder clinic served unsafe food - report

A hospital for adults with eating disorders has been rated inadequate after inspectors found the provision of food was "unsafe and unacceptable".

A Care Quality Commission (CQC) report of the Schoen Clinic in York said some patients were given mouldy bread and one was served food containing plastic.

Concerns were also raised around lack of staff and patient safety, though wards were clean and well-equipped.

Schoen Clinic Group said issues raised in the report "were quickly addressed".

Following the inspection in January the hospital has been placed in special measures and will be visited again in six months.

Brian Cranna, CQC's head of hospital inspection, said: "The standards of care we found at Schoen Clinic York were putting patients at risk and so we have taken urgent enforcement action, which means the service must improve if it's to retain its registration."

According to the report patients were put at risk of "physical and psychological harm due to unsafe and unacceptable food provision".

It details occasions when patients had to wait to eat breakfast because the service had run out of milk and one member of staff reported having to buy food for patients with their own money because of shortages at the hospital.

It said patients who had specific religious or ethical dietary needs also reported being served inappropriate food but staff had challenged this as being "eating disorder behaviour".

The previous rating for Schoen Clinic York, which is run by Newbridge Care Systems, was "requires improvement" and the facility will remain under close review by CQC.

A spokesperson for Schoen Clinic Group said it would "closely monitor the ongoing improvements within our York service to ensure our group benchmark of a Good or Outstanding CQC rating is reached at the earliest possible opportunity".

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