The New Dining Practice Standards were released September 7!
Pioneer Network in conjunction with CMS convened the Food & Dining Clinical Standards Task Force. The event brought together professionals from multiple clinical disciplines including ADA, AMDA, NADONA, ASHA, AOTA, etc to discuss and agree upon dining practice standards supporting person centered care and culture change values.
It was a humbling experience for me to seated at the table (representing ADA) with professionals from clinical associations making decisions that will impact thousands of elders across the nation.
The New Dining Practice Standards reflects evidence based research meshed with current thinking. There are 10 Standards which can be simplified to the following:
- Individualized Liberal Diets
- Real Food First
- Honoring Food Choices
- Shifting from staff control to individualized support of self-directed care
- New Negative Outcome
Bottom line, elders have the right to choose what they wish to eat, when they wish to eat, and how much they wish to eat. Our job as health care professionals is to respect their wishes. Another key part of our job is to educate them on choice, beneficial versus detrimental, and allow them to choose. Even those that cannot verbalize reveal their choices each time they refuse a food item.
CMS F281 Professional Standards will catalogue these standards along with the others developed by professional organizations and reference them when necessary.
My last blog, Letting Go of Therapeutic Diets, examines the Individualized Liberal Diets. My next blog will look at Real Food First.
Linda Roberts
Linda, Great concept to remind all of us what the standards should be. We get mentally locked into some of the practices that we were trained in and sometimes are hard to let go of, other disciplines have a very difficult time still with the use of the liberalized diets. The more exposure the better.
Great blog! I love the way dining is going. Totally agree with choice in LTC.
I’ll send it to one of my FSD.
I love the way were are headed with liberalizing diets—even working with CKD pt’s in LTC settings I feel we can make such a difference in quality of life by being less restrictive. While in a few cases restriction is necessary most of the time I find they do eat better if diet is liberalized. We have a upward battle educating staff and physicians on why this is so important!
Linda, great to see the industry going this direction. As software providers, we are keen to help provide tools to professionals to help with their goals of meeting the New Dining Practice Standards. Our latest development is focussing on bringing mobile selective menus (via iPad or other tablet) right to point of service for residents and patients…great start so far!
Linda…you are always keeping up with outstanding customer service to LTC residents!! I know if I was a current resident I would be oh so thankful that you believe in “thinking out of the box”!! I am so thankful to be part of the LRA team!! I love where consulting is going. Great Blog too. How do you find the time???
Christine
we used to provide waivers for individuals that refused the recommended mechanically altered/thickened liquid diets, but then a couple years ago, we received documentation that indicated that in NY state, those waivers were meaningless for the facility, and that we were not allowed to provide residents with their preferred texture, despite signed waivers by the resident and/or family. This seems to be at odds with the new recommendations. how can I clarify this?