A Seven Day Cyclical Menu Planning for a Hospital Patient - Research Paper Example

A Seven Day Cyclical Menu Planning for a Hospital Patient Introduction With an awareness of the fact that eighty to one hundred percent of the total number of patients within a hospital may entirely depend on the diet provided by the institution’s catering service in order for them to attain nutritional support, it may be significant to note that a considerable number of issues arising from the nutritionally balanced food’s provision may be preventable with perfect planning. Once individuals are admitted within a hospital or a healthcare centre, the physicians may be said to take up the responsibility of ordering a specific diet for them, after they have made an appropriate assessment, followed by their evaluation and screening by a nutrition associate or a diet technician. The technician would then make a decision on whether there should be adjustments to the already prescribed diet. An initial assessment may assimilate data including nutrition related to food history; medical tests, biochemical data and procedures, nutrition focused physical findings, client history and anthropometric measurements. There might be a number of questions that may loom in one’s mind as one makes a visit to his physician. These may range from weight gain or loss, abnormal lab values, trouble in swallowing food, tube feeling or even appetite loss. The dietician may then make his diagnosis to the patient and recommend an appropriate diet order suggesting the probable corrective solutions to the nutrition issue. The process that sees the determination of a patient’s diet might be called the Nutrition Care Process thus may be implemented within several hospitals. The extensions may include low sodium, renal diets, low fat, pureed and low phosphorous. In case one’s diet fails to appear into the existing menu extensions, there would be a notification to the nutrition associates who would then make a report to the diet technicians. Thesis statement Within the past recent years, there might have been a considerable increase in health issues within patients in hospitals as a result of inappropriate diet given to them by the hospital administration. It may be crucial to note that an aspect of nutrition might not just be significant for growth and enjoyment but for the nourishment of the body organs and tissues together with their nourishment too. The question that might hover within everybody’s mind would be; would it be possible to determine a diet for a specific patient? If so, how best would it be done? Why wouldn’t every patient be served the same food within the entire hospital? Objectives To obtain a means of determining a patient’s diet. To make use of appropriate diets in assisting patients attain quick recovery. To plan a menu for a hospital patient. It might be extremely crucial to note that there might be a couple of varying choices to make as regards menu for patients within a hospital. Selections, however, may be made possible so as to make sure that all the parameters within the diet are effectively fit. So as to make a determination of the appropriate food required within a menu, nutrient analysis would be used for every item. The palm pilots may often be utilized by nutrition associates in order to check and ensure that every meal is compliant and appropriate to the specific, restrictive diet. In case, a hospital fails to have a specific supplement or food required, it may often opt to make visits to the nearby grocery stores e.g. whole foods, stop and shop, fairway, etc so as to purchase food. It might be appropriate for the nutritionists to consider the fact that patients may differ in religion, status and culture hence the need to come up with steps that may aid in the food provision for each of them. Well educated nutrition associates would be more efficient than the quack type. This may be because they may be considered the first contact with patients as regards their diet. The cultural practices may be typically determined upon patient arrival thus even the first meal administered may be appropriate to the client. In order to make a menu plan, it may be significant to note a collection of considerably ranging input and information from various groups in the hospital. It may be crucial to note that: A planning group may be responsible for the implementation of local protocols so as to aid in the provision of fluid and food for patients. The key membership may be said to require the inclusion of one of the catering staff’s senior member, a senior dietician, a senior doctor, a senior nurse together with every allied professional and a representative of the patients. The planning group may be said to be responsible for the planning of the menu with the inclusion of the standard recipes’ use, making sure that fluid and food meets the ultimate requirements of a patient, setting times of meal that may be efficient for every group of patients. Every diet and menu may be said to undergo an analysis as regards nutritional content from a dietician registered by the state within the planning stage. The patient groups may be consulted concerning any new menus or dishes before their introduction. The Audit Scotland may be said to provide support for these key points hence recommending that there must be a planning of menus by NHS Board areas in accordance with the recognized principles of planning menus hence should carry this out through the use of multidisciplinary group. The planning process There should be a plan on the food provision so as to be sensitive towards the patients’ needs and not the needs of nursing, medical or other staff of healthcare and must be effectively managed in the form of a clinical care’s integral component instead of a hotel function. Assessment of the dietary needs of patient population Before one makes a consideration of menu development or planning a database recipe, the menu planning groups may find the need to make a consideration of the diverse issues, which might seem to impact on the patient food choice (food intakes). It may be prudent to gather relevant information concerning the varying dietary requirements from various patient groups in a hospital, which may aid in the development of appropriate food services by menu planners in the form that may be familiar to the patients. The act of providing food, which might be equal to the one provided in the patients’ homes may be said to have resulted to considerable food intake and a terrific enjoyment of hospital meals. The information concerning a patient’s dislikes and likes, any disabilities, which might impact on their ability to drink or eat, environmental or social mealtime requirements, a therapeutic diet’s needs and food allergies, ethnic/religious/cultural requirements together with an equipment need to aid in drinking and eating ought to be put under consideration within the food and menu service planning. Every patient’s assessment on dietary needs must be part of their personal nursing care and medical pathway and in accordance with NHSQS standards. In order to make an assessment of various patients’ population’s dietary needs, there must be an inclusion of the information below: Age Gender Ethnic, cultural, religious and social diversity Physical or mental health needs Food preferences Length of stay (which in this case would be seven days) Nutritional risk It may be crucial for the clinical specialists to be put under consideration as regards therapeutic diets. Such an information may be said to be accessible in the health information department of NHS, nutritional screening data, patient surveys, other anecdotally and hospital staff, compliments and complaints. Food services data that may be collated including wastage information and menu item uptake may also be significant within the initial menu planning stages. The patients may be broadly grouped in the following categories: Nutritionally vulnerable: they may have normal requirements of nutrition although they may lack an appetite for food or they may not be capable of consuming normal quantities during mealtimes. Nutritionally well: they may have normal requirements of nutrition together with a normal appetite or their conditions may require a strict diet as regards the principles to healthy eating. Personal or special dietary needs: e.g. ethnic or religious dietary requirements. Therapeutic diet’s requirements: e.g. allergy-free diet, renal diet or modified texture diet. It might be extremely crucial to remember that they may call for a combination diet that meets their personal or therapeutic or religious needs. It may be extremely essential to provide appropriate fluids and foods so as to meet the needs of the patients including texture modified diet, gluten free or renal diet to patients who don’t consume meat products. Supplementary feeding Everyday mid-meals (e.g. snacks and beverage taken in between main meals) may be considered an extremely significant section of institutional based food service in the healthcare setting. They may be a crucial occasion aimed at rapidly causing an increase in the nutritional intake of patients who might have low appetite for food. A survey based in Australia revealed that most hospitals often provided their patients with a minimum of three mid meals on a regular basis: 99% offered afternoon tea 98% offered morning tea 93% offered supper while 20% offered a hot early morning pre breakfast beverage. Also, the normal foods that may come with these supplements may be said to be tea, milk beverages, coffee, cake, biscuits etc. patients who require an additional nutritional support may often be specially prescribed for fortified nutritional supplements: these may often be milk based commercially packaged cold beverages that may be drunk with a straw from a pack, though, there might be the provision of hot soups. These supplements may be said to be consumed or utilized within normal mid meal times, or could be delivered by nurses within minute prescribed doses as one of the drug rounds in order to encourage their consumption’s compliance. They may often be viewed as meals in a traditional basis since they may not be served by the personnel on food service form the kitchen; however, they may be said to have an immense effect on the nutritional intakes of patients. As regards, the institutions that may provide meals on a daily basis it may be common for them to make a provision of three meals everyday together with a couple of snack and mid meal options. They may be effectively served on trays and from a snack and beverage trolley wheeled through the ward areas. Another hospital proportion may be said to offer continental breakfast only. The trend thus remains a considerable concern due to the fact that there might be proof of patients’ poor nutrient intakes due to the unavailability of hot breakfasts. Other hospitals may be said to have drifted from the traditional pattern that may be marked by three key meals to the one that offers four to five meals in a day. A typical pattern of meals may have its own cost advantages due to the fact that every hot meal could be made by one cook in a single working shift. The avoidance of under-nutrition within patients must concentrate on ordinary food delivery through the oral route, and artificial nutrition support or sip feeds must not be preferred to the adequate fluid and food provision, unless clear clinical indications exist. A patient who might be provided with food, which might be familiar and enjoyable to him, may be considered more likely to utilize it thus ensuring the provision of the provided nutrition on their respective plates. The provision of a considerable choice may be more certain to ensure personal food preferences are met together with individuals’ dietary needs than normal. Conclusion In view of all the laws and rules of preparing a patient’s menu, I might conclude that a cyclical seven day menu may comprise of three meals per day. An addition of mid meals would come in handy to improve the patient’s intake thus, a cup of soup may be appropriate during midmorning while a cup of hot coffee would be appropriate during a cold evening. The three daily meals would be taken in the morning, midday and evening. An additional midnight hot drink would be appropriate in case the patient could wake up and take it. As mentioned earlier, the specialist’s recommendations must often be considered in the designing of appropriate menu plans. In the eventuality, every passing day may have to ensure a balanced diet to the patient together with an increased appetite for food. Morning meals would often be made a little heavy as compared to lunch meals. A cup of milk, a loaf of bread, fruits together with a few pieces of meat would be appropriate. During the lunch meal a lighter meal would be better. A plate of rice together with vegetables and fresh fruits would be perfect. For the evening meal, it would be appropriate to incorporate fresh vegetables, a fried egg, fruits and a maize meal together with a cup of milk before the patient retires to bed. References Allison S (1999). Hospital food as treatment, Maidenhead, British Association for Parenteral and interal Nutrition. New York. American Dietetic Association. (2006). Position of the American Dietetics Association: Child and Adolescent Food and Nutrition Programs. J Am Diet Assoc, 106, 1467-1475. Batstone A (1983). Hierarchy of maintenance and maintenance of Hierarchy. Murcott A, the Sociology of Food and Eating, Aldershot, Gower, 45-53. Beck A, Balknas U, Furst P, Hasunen K, Jones L, Keller U, Melchior J, Mikkelsen B, Schauder P, Sivonen L, Zinck O, Oinen H and Ovesen L (2001). Food and nutrition care in hospitals: how to prevent undernutrition - report and guidelines from the Council of Europe. Clin Nutr, 20, 455-460. Cardello A, Bell R and Kramer M (1996). Attitudes of consumers toward military and other institutional foods. Food Qual Pref, 7, 7-20. Read More