Using enter-and-view provision to review hospital nutritional care

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Patient Experience
• Nutrition and Dietetics

Background:

• Local Involvement Networks (LINks) possess 'enter-and-view' powers to scrutinize health and social care services.
• Assessing the quality of inpatient nutrition and hydration is crucial for patient well-being and recovery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of nutrition and hydration services for inpatients at North Bristol NHS Trust.
• To identify areas for improvement in nutritional care based on patient and staff perspectives.

Main Methods:

• Utilized 'enter-and-view' powers to conduct a quality assessment.
• Reviewed trust policies, interviewed staff and board members, and observed mealtimes.
• Gathered patient feedback on their dining experience.

Main Results:

• Nutritional screening protocols are implemented trust-wide.
• Protected mealtimes are established to enhance the dining environment.
• Identified a need for a standardized system to assist patients with eating and drinking.

Conclusions:

• The trust demonstrates a commitment to nutritional screening and protected mealtimes.
• Recommendations include implementing a universal system for identifying patients needing eating assistance.
• Further improvements in monitoring food wastage and promoting regular fluid intake are suggested.