The new 123- bed St John of God Midland Private Hospital in WA opened its doors in late August, providing expanded access to private health services across the midland region. The new facility, which includes eight operating theatres and the area’s first interventional cardiology catheterisation laboratory, also boasts a custom built, fully electric commercial kitchen designed to support efficient day to day foodservice operations while contributing to the hospital’s wider sustainability objectives.

“Previously public and private hospital services were co-located on the Midland Health Campus. With the opening of the new standalone St John of God Midland Private Hospital, private services have now transitioned to the new facility,” explains Head Chef Genaveve Palmer, who came on board about a month prior to opening.

 “In addition to our 90 overnight beds, we have 27 day procedure beds for both adults and children and we’re operating a room service model for foodservice production and delivery, which is line with what most St John of God sites offer although each hospital is slightly different depending on size.”

Project management, equipment supply and installation across the hospital’s main kitchen, preparation and bulk cooking areas, cook-to-order stations, foodservice and holding areas, cool rooms and freezer rooms, warewashing facilities and dry goods storage was all handled by Hospitality in Healthcare Gold Supporter Caterlink, with St John of God’s national menu management system created by Platinum Supporter Delegate Group in place to track meals and patient dietary requirements.

“Once the equipment was installed, we engaged Caterlink to provide training on each of the assets,” Genaveve says. These include an Rational iVario Pro cooking centre, 20 stacker and 10 stacker ovens, four burner induction cooktop, electric deep fryers, Irinox blast chiller, Comenda dishwasher and potwasher, plus a smaller dishwasher to service the site’s café, which is housed within the hospital’s main reception area.

There’s also an small macerator, Hoshizaki ice machine and Williams fridges (including a display fridge for the café), along with custom exhaust canopies, specialised fabrication and stainless steel fixtures.

With the site now up and running, Genaveve says, “We’re still finding our feet with regard to workflows – our processes are continually evolving so we’ll be pushing our equipment to its limits, then reorganising accordingly.

“There’s always challenges to overcome when you’re commissioning a kitchen – everything from making sure you’ve got the right detergent to the right trays to the accessories that align with what you’re doing, and of course making sure everything is achievable in the timeframe you have available. Our team have pulled together and we’ve had great support from management in ensuring we can deliver a room service model that meets all our patients’ needs.”

Caterlink WA Project Consultant Chun Tan adds: “Healthcare continues to be an important sector for Caterlink. We are committed to working with healthcare providers, builders and project teams to deliver reliable commercial kitchen solutions that support staff, foodservice operations and ultimately the care provided to patients.”