Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-02-15
Secret Report.
due on Theft Of
|Ga||inger Food
Thousands Of Dollars
Worth Stolen on Way
To Hospital Wards
By THONGS 6. Buchonon

District Budget Officer Walter
L. Fowler tomorrow will give
Commissioner Guy Mason a
confidential report on food
thefts by Gallinger Hospital
employees amounting to thou
sands of dollars during the last
few years.
The food was stolen from delivery
carts carrying patients meals from
the main kitchen to the hospital
wards. A few of the guilty employees
have been caught and fired. Others
have been under observation In re-
cent weeks.
Supt. Alvin r. Sweeney, asked to
verify the report last night, adj
mitted that up to per cent Of the
patients food was being stolen when
he took his present hospital post in
1945. He said the problem had been
brought under control now, however.
Part Time Help Blamed.
DIR. Sweeney blamed the thefts
largely on part-time workers at the
hospital He said most of the food
disappeared" on week lends, when a
large part of the regular staff is of
duty.
Empty milk bottles, fruit and veg
etable cans, egg and meat contain
ers have been found discarded in
hospital corridors and other, parts
of the hospital
Neither DR.. Sweeney nor Mr.
Fowler would estimate the value OF
the stolen food, but they indicated
1t amounted to several thousand"
dollars during the last few years.
Mr.. Fowler, who undertook an in
vestigation of the Gallinger food
losses when reports of theft reached
Commissioner Mason early this
month. indicated displeasure at pre-
mature exposure of the secret in
quiry, fearing publicity would ham,
per investigators in their attempt to
catch the thieves in the act
Says No One Went Hungry.
He said the official inquiry on food
thefts had been confined to CALM
ger Hospital, and did not yet In
volye any other District institution.
Removal of the food from con-
tanners before they reached the
wards sometimes left such skimpy
meals for the patients, DR.. Sweeney
said, that dietitians had to send back
to the Kitchen for more The super
intendent said the thefts had not
caused any patient to 60 hungry
In some cases, however, hospital
officials reported thefts of rationed
items like meat had to be replaced
by fish or other substitutes.
DR.. Sweeney said the situation
was far less serious now than when
he first came to the hospital, Early
last year, he reported, three EN-.
ployes were brought to trial on food
theft charges. Two were convicted,
he said. The third, although not
proved in court to have stolen food,
was discharged.
Some Taken by Patients.
DR.. Sweeney said he had asked
food cart manufacturers If locked
containers were on the market, and
expressed hope that paddock sys-
tenn could be installed on the carts.
He said inventories have been taken
for some time on the food actually
placed on carts, and the ward staff
has been instructed to check that
the amount ordered actually ar
rives.
Since attendants are often re-
sponsible for more, than one cart.
however, close supervision Is diff
ficult, DR.. Sweeney said.
Undoubtedly some of the missing
food has been taken by patients
themselves, the superintendent add
ed. Patients able to walk about the
wards have been caught taking food
from carts, he reported.
Disclosure of the food inquiry was
made to reporters by Commissioner
Mason yesterday.