Acceptance of hospital food

• Autor(a) principal: SOUSA, Anete Araújo de
• Data de Publicação: 2023
• Outros Autores: GLORIA, Mariana de Souza, CARDOSO, Thalita Schütz
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Revista de Nutrição
• Texto Completo: https://periodicos.puc-campinas.edu.br/nutricao/article/view/9389
• topic: Patient’s acceptance of health care; Collective food; Diet; Food service, hospital; Aceitação pelo paciente de cuidados de saúde; Alimentação coletiva; Dieta; Serviço Hospitalar de Nutrição

ObjectiveThis study assessed patients’ acceptance of hospital foods in a public hospital located in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil. MethodsThe leftover-ingestion index was used to analyze the volume of leftovers of hospitalized patients during 15 days. The index was determined by diet type: normal, special with salt and special without salt. Satisfaction questionnaires were administered to the patients and the factors that influence food acceptance were assessed.ResultsThe total weight of 1,877 meals was 868kg and the weight of the leftovers was 313kg, thus a leftoveringestion index of 36.09%. The percentage of leftovers of the special diets with salt, normal diets and special diets without salt were 53.68%, 33.99% and 33.84%, respectively. The patients were satisfied with the variety, amount and presentation of the meals but complained about the temperature and seasonings, with ratings of 43.00% and 34.30%, respectively. The leftover-ingestion index (36.09%) was above the acceptable index (20.00%) for a diseased population, indicating a considerable waste of food.ConclusionThe results show that it is necessary to assess the meal production processes and develop strategies that encourage the patients to eat.