Hospital debuts food market for patients and staff

In an effort to combat food insecurity and promote healthy eating, Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital has partnered with St. Pete Free Clinic to offer a free food market to staff, patients and their families.

The initiative, which began as a small-scale produce market during Nutrition Month, evolved into a weekly food pantry when hospital staff realized food insecurity was an ongoing issue. The All Kids Campus Market offers fresh produce, shelf-stable foods, meat and dairy items. The selection varies week to week depending on what St. Pete Free Clinic (SPFC) is able to offer.

All Kids Campus Market program coordinator Karen Diaz Serrano said the market averages about 100 people per day and gives out approximately 1,000 pounds of food every week.

“People have been really positive about it,” Diaz Serrano said. “They’ve been telling other patients, and it’s really grown from word of mouth. It’s almost like a social gathering, too, because people share recipes and ideas.”

The All Kids Campus Market also offers fresh produce picked from the hospital’s on-campus garden.

According to data gathered by Feeding America, more than 120,000 people, just over 12% of the total population, were food insecure in Pinellas County in 2022. With the cost of living continuing to rise, many experts in the field estimate that number is even higher today.

“We always talk about how food is health, so giving people fresh food is really important,” Diaz Serrano emphasized. “[Patients] might not have access to this, but when they come to an appointment, they know that it’s here, and they can easily grab whatever they need and go.”

SPFC Food Programs Procurement Manager Mario Da Silva works with Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital to support the All Kids Campus Market. In a written statement, he said to the Catalyst, “Not everyone in this community can access fresh produce and healthy food items.  Nutritious food helps support overall health and healing.  Working together with JHACH using our knowledge and resources for the same common goal: helping those who may not have access to nutritious food with compassion and dignity is important to the overall health of our community.”

Inside the market, signs promote the health benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, and recipe cards teach families how to incorporate the food they receive from the market into breakfast, lunch and dinner. Diaz Serrano said providing free produce allows patients to try new, healthier options without financial risk.

Recipe cards offered at the All Kids Campus Market demonstrate how to use fresh produce to create healthy meals at home.

“We have cardiac patients coming in, so we try to get all the heart-healthy kinds of things. Low sodium is always important,” said Diaz Serrano. “They can try it at no cost and think, ‘Okay, yes, I do like this. Let me go try it at home.’  Because the patients and their families all shop together, they’re also eating the same thing. It’s not like we’re singling one person out; the whole family can have a healthy diet together.”

In addition to providing food, the market, located at the hospital’s Child Development Rehab Center, also incorporates therapy sessions, with physical therapists and speech therapists using the space for integrated therapy activities. 

The program is funded by grants and the St. Pete Free Clinic. SPFC staff members and volunteers organize the food items at the Jared S. Hechtkopf Food Bank and then deliver them weekly.

Due to space and capacity restraints, the All Kids Campus Market is only open to hospital staff and patients. However, SPFC has multiple locations throughout Pinellas County where the nonprofit offers free food to the general public. A map of food pantry locations is available on SPFC’s website here.

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