DINING


confidence are therefore essential in supporting residents with specialist needs and can have a direct impact on their nutritional intake and overall wellbeing. If care teams lack sufficient training, residents may eat less, and opportunities to spot changes in eating habits or nutritional intake may be missed. It’s therefore vital that staff feel empowered and equipped with the knowledge to support residents at mealtimes and understand how dementia can influence an individual’s dining experience.


Making mealtimes more person-centred While nutritional and dietary needs vary among residents, the environments required to enable residents to eat well and maintain their wellbeing differ too. This is particularly prevalent for those living with dementia. Mealtimes are not just about what’s served at


the table, but how, where and with whom people eat. For some residents, a calmer, supportive setting is essential, while others may prefer a more sociable environment. Therefore, care teams should adopt a person-centred approach, creating tailored dining experiences that reflect individual preferences, routines and specialist needs, particularly for those living with long-term conditions. Despite its importance, adapting dining


environments for residents can become overlooked when competing with other operational pressures. While this may be true, enabling staff to spend more time supporting residents during mealtimes by reducing operational burdens, such as meal preparation, can allow providers to focus more on what matters most: creating mealtimes that make a real difference to residents. Research suggests just 17 per cent of providers


15521-QMS-001


15521-EMS-001


THE CARE HOME INDUSTRY HANDBOOK 2027 33


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