Older people's involvement in activities related to meals in nursing homes

Abstract

Management and nurses should focus on residents' eating and drinking, which are essentials of nursing care. The residents should be asked whether they would like to participate in different mealtime activities. Further, a person-centred care approach that facilitates activities concerning food and meals should be promoted.

How Widely are Supportive and Flexible Food Service Systems and Mealtime Interventions Used for People in Residential Care Facilities? A Comparison of Dementia-Specific and Nonspecific Facilities

“…One study in Norway found only limited involvement of residents (including those with and without dementia) in food service systems and planning—for example, none were involved in menu planning, and 90% did not participate in food preparation or meal provision (e.g. setting or clearing tables) [17]. In our study a low proportion of facilities indicated that residents were involved in preparation for meals (16.3% of facilities surveyed).…”

“…In our study a low proportion of facilities indicated that residents were involved in preparation for meals (16.3% of facilities surveyed). In addition, in the Norwegian study most residents were unable to decide when they wanted to eat (76.3%) [17]. Similarly, in the current study 70% of facilities surveyed indicated that meals were served at a set time.…”

“…By comparison, in Denmark there has been a push for traditional nursing homes to be converted or for new homes to be established as ‘Stay and Living Environments’ which have a greater focus on the social environment, and support greater involvement of residents in the planning and provision of their own meals—for example, involvement in planning the menu and preparing meals [20]. However, the majority of available evidence points to continuing widespread use of institutional-style and traditional food service systems internationally, with a focus on bulk production of food in a central kitchen by professional staff with limited choice, flexibility and involvement for residents [17,21].…”

“…There is also little information on the degree of implementation of the recommended strategies, and few studies of current practice in aged care food service have been published. Those undertaken have identified limited levels of choice of meals available to residents and the prominent use of traditional models of centralized food plating and distribution systems based around a main kitchen [15,16,17].…”

Agreement between two Meal Quality Indexes adapted to evaluate food consumption of institutionalized elderly

“…It is important to emphasize that aging is a natural process involving anatomical and functional changes, with repercussions on the health conditions and the nutritional status of the elderly [9]. Additionally, institutionalization imposes changes in the routine of elderly people that can change their dietary habits and influence their health fragility, due to reduced food acceptance and consequent impairment of their nutritional status [10,11].…”