Improving patient meal satisfaction with room service meal delivery

Cancer and cancer therapies cause side effects that prevent patients from consuming adequate amounts of food. As evidenced by patient meal consumption studies conducted at patients' bedside, only 39 percent of patients surveyed consumed greater than 50 percent of their main entree. The Food and Nutrition Services Department at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center used the organization's performance improvement process, STRAIGHT-A, to develop and execute a room service program designed to increase patient meal consumption and improve patient meal satisfaction A multidisciplinary task force developed policies and procedures and tested new menu items as part of the room service plan. After program implementation, 88 percent of patients surveyed consumed greater than 50 percent of their main entree.