20th October 2011

DORCHESTER: Friends angry over loss of hospital cafe

By Philip Evans and Anita Harries

VOLUNTEERS who have raised £5 million for Dorset County Hospital since 1995 have been left angry and shocked by a decision to take the running of the Friends Cafe away from them.

The announcement that the DCH Hospital NHS Foundation Trust would be taking over the Friends Cafe as from January 1st 2012 went before before a packed and heated meeting at the Damers Restaurant on Monday afternoon.

The decision follows an external review of food services in the Dorchester Hospital that showed that merging the cafe with the hospital’s catering department would be more profitable.

A spokesperson for the Friends, who have been running the cafe for 25 years, said they were disappointed by the trust’s decision and were struggling to understand how the cafe could be more profitable.

A statement from the trust said: “Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has announced it will be running the Friends of DCH Cafe in the hospital from 1st January 2012. 

“The move follows an external review of food services in the hospital which showed that merging the cafe with the hospital’s catering department would lead to a more cohesive service and maximise the money made for supporting patient services.” 

The Trust’s Director of Finance, Bill Boa, said: “We greatly appreciate the service the Friends have provided from the cafe premises, but with the current financial pressures the hospital is facing we have to ensure we are making the most of every opportunity for generating income. 

“Having a single catering service for the hospital will make it much easier to manage efficiently. We have been working closely with the Friends to identify other volunteer roles the cafe volunteers can take on so they can continue to make a vital contribution to the hospital.

“The Friends will continue to provide their valuable charitable support through the hospital shop and ward trolley service. Improvements planned for the cafe include extended opening hours.”

Disappointed

The Friends responded with their own statement issued before the meeting. It stated: “We are very disappointed with the trust’s decision to take over the Friends Cafe.

“Of our 165 volunteers, 42 work in the cafe, some have worked for the Friends for more than 25 years and they will be upset by this decision. We very much value the commitment of our volunteers and hope they will feel able to transfer to the shop or trolley services. 

“We do appreciate the financial difficulties the trust is facing and have made huge efforts to work with the trust, after all we are here for the benefit of the patients. However, we now have to move forward and continue with our expressed aims which are ‘providing comfort and help to the patients of Dorset County Hospital, their relatives and friends’.”

Trust chief executive officer Jean O’Callghan said they valued the friendship and partnership the Friends had put into the trust, adding: “But we need to be more business-like than this hospital has been in the past. The delivering of its food services is not as profitable as it should be. Very few hospitals have charities running their cafes. This move is not about dissatisfaction but about making the most of our resources."

Mr Boa added: “Following  survey by Bournemouth University we need to run Damers Restaurant and cafe in a more intgrated fashion. By running the cafe as a premium resturant we can generate £100,000 more than it currently earns.”

But volunteers at the meeting were far from satisfied with the explanations given and expressed concerns about charitable funds “disappearing into a black hole that is the Foundation Trust”.

Others expressed the view that prices would rise and expressed fears that the cafe could be let as a franchise to a company such as Costa Coffee.

Friends manager Sharon Merritt said: “We struggle to understand how the Trust can make the cafe more profitable, as they have to pay for staffing it.

“For the volunteers it is like an extended family, many friendships have formed and it will leave a huge hole in their lives. We understand we need to move with the times, but at what cost?

“The Friends Cafe is not just about raising money for the hospital, it is also a place for patients and visitors to have a break from the wards and be greeted by friendly volunteers who have the time to chat and listen to them. 

“In the cafe alone we have raised thousands for the hospital every year since it opened in 1998. Most recently the Friends have given more than £82,000 for the refurbishment of the wards.

“The cafe is the most established, in a good location and therefore is our biggest asset. More than 50 per cent of our business comes from here. If they say they will run it more efficiently, does this imply we have been running it inefficiently? It is upsetting for the volunteers who have been working in the cafe. It implies I am not doing my job properly.

“The cafe makes a lot of money and it is totally devaluing the work we have done.”

PICTURE 1: FRIENDS manager Sharon Merritt - ‘We are like a family’

PICTURE 2: Finance director Bill Boa explaining  the Trust’s reasons for taking over the Friends Cafe

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