CATERING
Greetwell Purchasing Solutions’ Steve Gibson looks at how care providers can meet the dietary requirements of residents, whilst simultaneously ensuring that every mealtime experience is a pleasurable one.
We can all appreciate how difficult it can be to organise dinnertime for a family, so spare a thought for the teams responsible for the planning, preparation and delivery of meals in care homes.
In particular, consider for a moment that each person living in a care home will have built up a lifetime of family favourite recipes, food traditions and likes and dislikes. In some cases, individuals may have been diagnosed with food intolerances and health related eating problems, such as dysphagia, all of which have to be taken into consideration when planning meals.
Serving up the Best “A varied menu
needs of individual resident’s dietary and health requirements within a set budget is key, but can often be hard to achieve.
that considers the
National Minimum Standards (NMS),
and reflects the latest
Care home catering is closely scrutinised by all, including individuals visiting loved ones or those conducting research of a care home for themselves. Those present in care homes will dissect a home’s mealtime provisions, along with a series of other aspects of care to ensure it is in line with expected requirements.
This makes the prospect of delivering nutritious, exciting meals efficiently to residents a very challenging one. As Managing Director of Greetwell Purchasing Solutions I empathise with the challenges they face.
Striking the right balance between catering services that meet the
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in care home catering best practice should be adopted.”
Mealtimes form a focal point of the day for the residents, and therefore should not only be a source of good nutrition, but an enjoyable and social occasion.
There are simple guidelines that can be followed to ensure the basic elements of a balanced menu are considered. These include providing:
• At least two portions of protein food each day.
• At least three portions of vegetables each day.
• At least one portion of starchy food each meal.
• At least two portions of fruit each day.
• At least three portions of dairy food each day.
• Oily fish at least once a week.
To ensure providers meet these needs and address any specific dietary requirements including those to support the management of diabetes, dementia and gluten intolerance, as well as malnutrition, a varied menu that considers the National Minimum Standards (NMS) and reflects the latest in care home catering best practice should be adopted.
Organisations should work closely with qualified and experienced consultant nutritionists, who can offer chef training days and ongoing packages of support, to ensure that changes in NMS can be addressed and taken on board quickly.
By taking advantage of training opportunities, delivered by a range of specialist organisations, care homes can deliver quality catering services to their residents. By having these provisions in place, care providers can also focus on the social aspect of mealtimes, safe in the knowledge that everyone at the table is enjoying the food being served.
www.greetwell.co.uk www.tomorrowscare.co.uk
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