Hospital Foodservice and Patient Experience: What's New?

Abstract

In 2003, hospital food quality ranked lowest of 10 items measured on a scale of satisfaction, according to a Press Ganey survey of 1.8 million patients ( 1 Press GaneyPress Ganey survey shows patients see room for improvement in hospital quality. Health Care Strategic Management. 2003; 21: 6 Google Scholar ). Since then, hospital foodservice has dramatically remade itself, employing chefs, using more fresh and seasonal ingredients, offering cook-to-order room service, and increasing the number of choices for each meal ( 2 Hill M. Hospitals try cooking up better food for patients. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110310/ap_on_re_us/us_fea_food_hospital_cuisine_1 Google Scholar ). At California-based Kaiser Permanente, for example, the menu includes citrus-marinated pork loin and barley pilaf, grass-fed beef, and fresh produce straight from farmers' markets ( 2 Hill M. Hospitals try cooking up better food for patients. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110310/ap_on_re_us/us_fea_food_hospital_cuisine_1 Google Scholar ). Grilled salmon, tilapia, quesadillas, stir-fry, pot roast, and roasted vegetable lasagna are some of the menu items offered at hospitals in Baystate Health in Springfield, MA; Hendricks Regional Health in Danville, IN; and Saint Francis Health System in Tulsa, OK. “There has definitely been a big change from your two-entrée selections to more of a restaurant-style menu,” says Lisette Coston, MBA, RD, LD, director of nutrition and foodservices at Saint Francis Health System in Tulsa, OK, for the last 13 years, and a member of the board of directors for the Association for Healthcare Foodservice. “It follows what we see in our society, with the trend toward much more eating at restaurants. At hospitals patients expect to see the same choices and quality.”