Geriatric Interview/Assessment

mrs tink rn · Jul 14, 2011

I think what your instructor is looking at with "mealtime climate" is where does the elderly client eat. In the nursing home where I work most of my residents eat their meals in a dining room as opposed to in their room as would happen in a hospital. Eating in a dining room fosters the idea that the nursing home is in fact the residents home.

kwilson2 · Jul 14, 2011

Thank you so much! That definately helped. Do you have any suggestions on the universal characteristics of aging?:)

Musvette,BSN,RN · Jul 14, 2011

For the Universal Characteristics of Aging. I think it also meant Normal Physical Changes Associated with Aging. you can find this in Fundamental of nursing books. I have the book by Kozier and it has it... hope this would help..

handyrn · Jul 14, 2011

I don't know how detailed your interview is supposed to be but, in my opinion, mealtime climate encompasses SO much! Some of the things I think about and questions I ask myself about the mealtime climate in a geriatric setting are things like:

(let's assume that we are talking about a nursing home/assisted living/residential type setting)

Obvious things such as: is the food warm enough, cold enough? And some that may not be so obvious: Is this the residents' preferred way to eat? Are there people around them that eat sloppy that will diminsh someone's appetite? Is there music playing in the dining room? Is that music good for the digestive system? Is it rock or rap music because the CNAs are young and turned it to that station? Could that be causing some anxiety during meals since it is not soothing to the elderly? When these people were kids and then when they were raising their own families, chances are good that mealtime was the most important time of the day when the whole family gathered and spent time with each other. No cell phone interruptions, no kids at ball practice, homecooked food, etc. How far are we from that kind of atmosphere? Are the CNAs engaging the residents in conversation or are they talking amongst themselves about what they did Saturday night? Is there a prayer before meals? When that prayer is being said is everything else quiet and on hold? This is very important and respectful to older generations (and some younger).

I think that there are a lot of things that could affect the climate in a dining room, and the climate can affect how a person eats, responds, etc, which all lead to how a person's health is.