Current And Future Practices In Hospital Foodservice

Nutrition Research Newsletter, March, 2000

Healthcare is rapidly changing, and managed care organizations suggest that organizations focus on cost control and improved access to medical services. Because these changes also affect hospital foodservice programs, a recent study described current operational practices and expectations for future practices in hospital foodservice. Another objective of the study was to establish the probability that current practices will change and determine whether differences in habits and routines exist on the basis of profit status and hospital size.

A questionnaire was mailed to a random sample of 500 foodservice directors in US hospitals containing at least 200 beds. The questionnaire focused on six areas: hospital characteristics, foodservice department, patient foodservice, non-patient foodservice, director characteristics, and general comments. Forty-three percent of the directors returned the questionnaire.

Several current practices were discovered. Of the hospitals polled, 55% used a selective menu, with 43% having a one-week cycle. Seventy-four percent of the foodservice directors reported using conventional food production and 81% stated they have a centralized, hot tray line. Although the most common method was the centralized, hot tray line, larger hospitals were more likely to use a centralized, cold tray line. Separate revenue-generating ideas, like coffee or food kiosks, retail bakeries, etc., were not that common in hospitals, although they were seen slightly more frequently in larger hospitals. However, 96% of the hospitals reported doing some sort of on-site catering.

The section on future practices was revealing. For example, 71% of the foodservice directors expect to serve less inpatients, 73% anticipate employing less staff, 61% would like to generate more revenue, and 70% plan on having smaller expense budgets.

This study confirms that the health care environment is changing. In general, the majority of foodservice directors expect to increase revenue budgets and decrease expense budgets. However, these directors all have different ideas about how to change their departments to meet these demands. It will be possible for further research to provide ongoing information on up-to-date and expected practices in the foodservice area. The decisions of foodservice directors must also be evaluated for efficacy in relation to patients and profits.

Melanie R. Silverman, Mary B. Gregoire, Linda J. Lafferty, and Rebecca A. Dowling, Current and Future Practices in Hospital Foodservice, JADA 100 (1): 76-80 (January 2000) [Correspondence: Mary B. Gregoire, PhD, RD, Hotel, Restaurant, Institution Management, Iowa State University, 11 MacKay Hall, Ames, IA 50011-1120.]