The pantry, which is run by dietitian Vivian Au in conjunction with the volunteers at The Corner Shop, has been providing healthy food to patients in need since September.

Vivian said it all came about when she was working with a colleague in the Liver Clinic.

“We saw this need for a lot of our patients who were really unwell,” she said.

“A lot of them were malnourished but they couldn’t follow through with the nutritional plan for whatever the reason; whether that is financially or a lack of access to nutritional foods.

Vivian reached out to the Corner Shop, who donated some seed money to start stocking the pantry, while also becoming its home.

Soon enough, the pantry was operational with several patients per week accessing it through vouchers from staff across the whole hospital.

“It’s still pretty grassroots but we’ve involved the nutrition department and some wards are pretty proactive with it,” Vivian said.

“We’re creating an environment where people don’t need to fill in a questionnaire or provide personal details – they can access the pantry with the ticket provided to them by staff that has no details other than the department name.”

With The Corner Shop recently opening and patients returning to the hospital, Vivian said now was a crucial time to make sure the pantry could provide those in need with the right foods to support their wellbeing.

“When we started we didn’t have a lot, so we relied on staff donations with the hope of working with other organisations, but of course we really appreciate our staff and their generosity,” she said.

If you would like to get involved, please contact Vivian.Au@health.nsw.gov.au.