(Chicago) - Sometimes innovation in health care takes the form of advanced imaging technology or breakthroughs in drug treatments. Sometimes it takes the form of hamburgers cut into squares and soup served in a cup.
It may seem simple, but these innovations are making a big difference for geriatric psychiatry patients at Rush University Medical Center, which recently established a new meal service to increase patient nutrition and satisfaction.
"We totally changed the way we do business on our geriatric psychiatry unit. It is part of our effort to gear our food and nutrition services to the needs of our patients on the different floors," said Marcy Stone, RD/LDN, assistant director of Food Service Operations at Rush, who led the team that developed the new meal service.
The patients in the geriatric psychiatric unit, located in Rush's Johnson R. Bowman Health Center, range in age from 49 to 101 and suffer from Alzheimer's disease and/or clinical depression. The center that is adjacent to Rush's acute care hospital.provides medical and rehabilitative patient care services to older persons and to persons with short-term and long-term disabilities. These illnesses make it difficult to eat, because the patients become overwhelmed when they see too much food in front of them, and their reduced motor skills make it difficult for them to feed themselves.
"A full tray of food wasn't meeting their needs. Too often patients did not eat and did not want to ask for help," said Kristin Gustashaw, MS, RD, LDN, a clinical dietitian in the department of Food and Nutrition. As a result, patients weren't eating enough to sustain themselves, adding to their health problems.
Modeled after the pediatric menu, the new meal service emphasizes finger foods that patients can handle easily, such as tater tots, chicken nuggets, and fish sticks. Burgers and sandwiches are quartered, fruit is sliced, and soups are served in a cup to make them all
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Contact: Mary Ann Schultz
Mary_Ann_Schultz@rush.edu
312-942-7816
Rush University Medical Center
27-Sep-2006