‘It was sickening’: Teenager with lung disease served mouldy food in hospital

A teenager suffering from chronic lung disease says she was left “disgusted” by food served to her at a hospital.

Amira Samba, 14, is an outpatient at King’s College Hospital in Denmark Hill, where she spends up to seven months of the year for treatment. She is waiting for a double lung transplant.

The teenager, who lives in Camberwell, claims the hospital staff have served her mouldy food three times and dismissed her concerns when she raised the issue.

“I felt disgusted because it had a very strong scent,” said Miss Samba. “It was sickening.

“They treat me like I’m a number, not like a human being. It definitely makes me not want to go there.”

The first time Miss Samba claims to have beens served mouldy food was a halal chicken tikka meal. The second and third time she was served a tomato pasta dish.

Miss Samba’s mum, Sofia El-Moudden, 42, said she was “fuming” at the way her daughter had been treated.

“She’s very careful with what she eats,” said Ms El-Moudden. “She’s scared of bugs because of her condition and now she refuses to eat the food.

“As soon as you opened the packet the smell hits you. This is the third time now, something has to be done. There could be people who are not as careful as her eating the food.”

Ms El-Moudden claimed the first time they received mouldy food she alerted a nurse who “hushed it away” and promised to speak to the kitchen.

The second time, Ms El-Moudden claims she told the dinner lady who just replaced it with a new portion.

The family have not made a formal complaint to the hospital as they say they are worried about being mistreated in future.

A spokesman for King’s College Hospital said: “We are sorry to hear about Amira’s experiences at King’s, and we are looking into the concerns raised.”

Pictured top: Mouldy food served to Miss Samba on June 22 (Picture: Sofia El-Moudden)