Hospital Food

[RNKitty]

Is anyone else out there disgusted with what we feed our patients? Out of the 5 hospitals I have worked, none of them followed the recommended nutritional guidelines.

Whole grains - has anyone seen them on a plate? (A whole grain does not include WHITE rice, WHITE pasta, WHITE bread, etc.)

Legumes? Uh-uh.

Five servings of fruits and veges a day? Only if you count the friut in jello (which is pure sugar and chemicals) or boiled carrots.

Fish? The only time I have seen fish on a plate it was breaded and deep fried.

One RD I spoke with on this subject said "The patients just wouldn't eat the food if we sent up baked fish and whole grains." Has she really seen the amount of food that gets thrown away because the patients WON'T eat it?

Are we not the example of health and healing to our communities? How can we expect our patients to heal if we feed them crap!?!?

Just a thought.

[mattcastens]

I agree about the food. Unfortunately, it comes with the territory of having to make so much in bulk. It's true, though, that improvements could be made.

I am a firm believer in healthy food. Not a veggetarian, but close, and I try to eat organic, whole foods whenever possible. I have my fiancee and family sworn to bringing be home made (healthy!) food if I ever end up in the hospital.

[RNKitty]

Originally posted by mattcastens

I agree about the food. Unfortunately, it comes with the territory of having to make so much in bulk. It's true, though, that improvements could be made.

I am a firm believer in healthy food. Not a veggetarian, but close, and I try to eat organic, whole foods whenever possible. I have my fiancee and family sworn to bringing be home made (healthy!) food if I ever end up in the hospital.

Ah, a man after my own heart. My husband grew up on meat and potatoes, but I am slowly winning him over to beans and rice. When my family is sick, they get nothing but miso soup, then progress to cooked grains. If that stays down, then they can eat. Let your food be your medicine!

Along the lines of bulk - how hard is it to do legumes and whole grains in bulk? And a whole piece of fruit is a no brainer! Get a good food processor and you can whip up a big salad in no time. And true vegetable broth! Throw the veges in a pot of water, then run through a food processor or blender to mix up fine! It would be much better than the sodium filled artificial chicken broth they send up.

[prmenrs, RN]

Out here if you see USC, it means University of Southern California! How confusing!! But then, I do confuse easily!