Mealtimes in hospital – who does what?

Aim. This paper describes the findings of a descriptive study about what nurses do at mealtimes in relation to monitoring/assisting the eating practices of older patients in an acute care facility. Background. The prevalence of under nutrition is known to be high in hospitalized older patients and insufficient dietary intake is regarded as a major cause. However, most of the research tends to concentrate on the nursing home setting. Little is known about the situation in acute care facilities. Methods. Two medical wards participated in the study. Ward 1 had introduced a change of nurses’ meal break time and ward 2 continued with normal practice. Convenience sampling was used. Fifty nurses and 48 patients were observed at different mealtimes during two weeks. Four nurses and four patients who were observed were also interviewed. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Results. Kitchen staff delivered all meals and collected the majority of the meal trays. Older patients did not receive enough assistance during mealtimes. Interruptions happened frequently and social interaction was neglected. About one‐third of patients observed left more than two‐third of their meals. Conclusion. Nutrition issues appeared to receive less priority in the ward than other nursing care activities and nurses’ assistance was generally insufficient and not provided in a timely manner. Relevance to clinical practice. Findings highlight the deficiency in practice that should suggest to nurses that they examine their practice and put into place strategies to ensure older patients are properly/adequately hydrated and receive sufficient nutrient intake.