Groundbreaking standards for Food, Fluid and Nutritional Care in Hospitals are published today.
Groundbreaking standards for Food, Fluid and Nutritional Care in Hospitals are published today.
This is the first time that NHSScotland has taken a national approach to making sure that patients' dietary needs are properly assessed when they go into hospital and that they get nourishing, tasty food during their stay. All NHS Boards now have a responsibility to deliver on these standards and performance against these will be monitored by NHS QIS.
A number of reports have found that some patients may come into hospital underweight and if this is not recognised, the problem can get worse during their hospital stay, sometimes compromising their treatment and long-term recovery. It is particularly important to make sure that those who are in hospital for any length of time or who need special diets or assistance with eating are provided for.
Providing good nutritional care depends on a well organised ‘food chain’ that involves planning of meals, purchasing food, cooking it, serving it and where necessary, helping people with eating and drinking. The standards are designed to streamline the co-ordination of these arrangements to make sure that the needs of each patients are identified and met, particularly those at risk from malnutrition.
The Chairman of NHS QIS, Lord Naren Patel, said of the standards: “Food, fluid and nutritional care are core elements of patient care during any hospital stay. We know that what we eat and drink affects our health and wellbeing, as well as reflecting our culture and beliefs. These standards present a real challenge to NHSScotland to co-ordinate all the different elements of providing high quality nutritional care from assessing patients’ needs and planning and preparing food, to monitoring nutritional status and providing information on diet and health. They build on the growing awareness of the clinical significance of nutritional care as an integral part of treatment in hospital for children and adults alike. The standards involve everyone - patients, the public, and health professionals – and in rising to meet them, poor nutritional care will be a thing of the past.”
Notes to Editors
The standards cover five main areas:
- Policy and strategy
- Assessment, screening and care planning
- The planning and delivery of food
- Patient information and communication
- Education and training for staff
Food, Fluid and Nutritional Care Standards (PDF, 243K, 27 seconds)