Improving Food Scores in Customer Satisfaction, Part 2

Monday's post covered being aware of and meeting your resident's dietary needs. The second complaint or praise I want to address has to do with a facilty's ability or inability to see the mealtime experience  through their resident’s eyes. All too often in life, we see the world through our own perspective and fail to recognize the perspective of others. This can be an enormous fallacy as a caregiver, and can be the cause for many complaints.

You may not need help cutting meat, but some of your residents will. It may not make a big difference if you miss a meal, but it could be a significant challenge for some of your residents.

While mealtime may be just something on the schedule for some of your employees, it can be a significant break in the routine for residents.  As with Monday's post, I've italicized the comments that illustrate a facility's need for improvement, and bolded the comments that illustrate a job well done.

“My food was not always hot. It would have been nice if they would have uncovered the meal and cut up the meat.”
“There have been a few times when he was in physical therapy or with a doctor and missed a meal. They need to  follow up with meals, because it’s not good for an elderly person to go without especially if they are diabetic.”
“I didn't like the food. I suppose the bland food was good for the older people, but I don't consider myself older. I'm seventy-two.”
“They always brought me a try of food without even asking. I felt that was so thoughtful and caring.”
“They had a slip for you to put things you don't like and what you do like. They try to accommodate your wants.”
"I value a diet that will make him strong, so he can do his physical therapy.”
“He was on a pureed diet, but yet it was tasteful, and he never complained about it. When he had trouble, they went out of their way to find something for him to eat.”
“They were so good to my husband. When he was there at mealtime, they offered him a meal as well so he could eat with me.”
“The food was just great, and the quantity was very good. My wife's appetite has fallen off significantly and is just about non-existent. When I was there around dinnertime, there was always someone asking her if she could eat a little more.”

I recently toured one of our higher performing facilities who had transitioned from 3 meals a day to 5 meals a day, and had the cupboards stocked with plenty of snack choices. Their food scores are quite high, and their residents and family members are quite happy with the care they receive.

What is easy for some, is challenging for others.  And in the world of caregiving, it is absolutely imperative that you look at the mealtime through the lenses of your residents--and make changes to accommodate. 

Craig Christiansen
Pinnacle Quality Insight
www.pinnacleqi.com
info@pinnacleqi.com
(801) 293-0700