Heart attack patient claims Shrewsbury hospital food was 'overcooked' and 'inedible'
A man recovering from a heart attack claims he was served meals he "wouldn't give to a pig" during his stay at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital – and has taken pictures of the food to prove it.
Steve Powell, who had five heart attacks in as many years, believes it was only food brought in by his family that kept him healthy after he was repeatedly given meals he described as "inedible".
The 62-year-old, from Oswestry, claims staff overcooked food and destroyed all nutritional value and said patient food is much better elsewhere in the county.
His claims have been denied by the hospital, which said all patients were given the right nutrition and hydration.
Mr Powell, an engineer, stayed in hospital for five days after he had a heart attack in January.
He said: "I went into the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital at the end of January and was in for about five or six days. Whatever meal they served , it all tasted exactly the same, there was just no taste at all. I would not give those meals to a pig, they were completely overcooked and destroyed."
Mr Powell had no choice but to ask his family to bring in sandwiches during visiting hours. But he believes other patients weren't so lucky – and said some probably lost weight on the restricted diet.
Mr Powell said: "The nutrition is nowhere near good enough, it does not take much to cook food and yet they destroyed it."
Mr Powell could not even identify some of the meals he was served, and believes hospital catering is much better elsewhere.
He said: "You don't even know what some of the food is because there's no taste. I think they steamed the chicken but they destroyed it completely. You need protein. When I was in Stoke-on-Trent hospital the food was superb and Telford was better then Shrewsbury."
Joanne Yale, Head of Facilities at the hospital trust, said: "
"Our menus are nutritionally analysed and we aim to provide as much variety as we can to cater for a wide range of patient needs.
"We continually strive to ensure we deliver a high quality service."
