QM News 63 (pdf 752KB) - Queen Margaret University

PAGE 08
‘RECIPE FOR LIFE’ - ADDRESSING THE
NUTRITIONAL NEEDS OF OLDER PEOPLE
A study into the food and nutrition
needs of older people has highlighted
the role which service providers and
older people themselves can play in
ensuring this age group eats well.
Researchers at Queen Margaret’s Royal
Bank of Scotland Centre for the Older
Person’s Agenda (RBS COPA), along
with the University of Stirling and Age
Concern Scotland, examined the various
barriers to eating well faced by older
people who live alone and have difficulty
leaving the house, and how this affects
their physical and social wellbeing.
Researchers obtained information from
ten older people on their food and drink
intake and examined the factors that
support or hinder good nutrition. They
also sought views on older people’s
expectations of the people providing
services relating to food and nutrition,
and explored the problems facing
organisations and front-line staff when
providing these services.
“As we get older, a number of things
can lead to us not eating well,” explains
Belinda Dewar, project manager of the
research. “An illness or disability may
make it difficult for us to get to the
shops or to cook and enjoy food. Also,
someone who lives alone may feel it is
not worth cooking a meal for one.”
Home care workers play an important
role in encouraging older people to eat
well by building trusting relationships,
suggesting new recipes and providing
opportunities for social eating. However,
it is important that a system of assessment
is in place to ensure careful matching of
clients and workers to build a positive
relationship and to identify older people
whose situation requires monitoring or
referral to a specialist dietician.
“Very frail older people can experience
sensory, physical and cognitive
impairment, as well as long-term
medical conditions which can impact on
their ability to eat well,” explains Belinda.
“The complexity of the needs of older
people means that a complex
assessment process and range of
solutions is needed to identify and
meet their needs.
“Workers must have specific knowledge
of the nutrition needs of frail older
people and the skills to elicit the social
and psychological meaning of food in
their lives. Proper assessment will
provide some structure to any
investigation of nutrition-related
problems and ensure the needs of the
individual are met.”
An initiative has been developed in
conjunction with South Lanarkshire
Council to develop a training resource
pack for home care workers that will
raise awareness of the specific
nutritional needs of frail older people.
There is a need for home care workers
to gain more knowledge and skills in the
area of food and nutrition, and
establishing an induction programme
and specialist courses would help them
to identify risk factors and helpful
interventions if necessary. A booklet
containing good practice guidance for
home care workers is being piloted in a
separate initiative.
Many older people have a bland and
unexciting diet due to a lack of appetite
or to changes in their tastes and
digestion, which have led them to
reduce the range of foods that they can
eat. The effects of the ageing process
on appetite are well known as is the
need to provide nutritionally-balanced
meals. However, while services may be
well set up to provide for people’s basic
needs for food and cooking, they are
less well equipped to address some
of the social and psychological
components that contribute to older
people’s ability to eat well and to
quality of life, such as cooking or
eating with others.
The research found that there may be a
role for older people to contribute to
some food-related training or to teach
younger home care workers about
traditional meals.
An intergenerational project in which
older people share skills and knowledge
about cooking and food with pupils at a
local high school is currently underway.
“A key finding from our research is that
there is a need to ‘reconnect’ older
people with food,” explains Caroline
Donaldson, Research Assistant at RBS
COPA, who is leading the initiative.