Carers surprised at malnutrition claims

By Paul Dykes
A claim many elderly patients in care are suffering from malnutrition has surprised some Bay rest homes and private hospitals.
Respected nutritionist Fiona Boyle, who advises several of the care homes, will tell a conference in Tauranga tonight that as many as 60 per cent of fully nurse-dependent patients in care have malnutrition and a further 30 per cent have some form of clinical malnutrition.
Her comments cover a wide range of care facilities and she suggests it is more a lack of staff at meal time than a poor diet.
Thomas Scott, chief executive at Althorp Private Hospital, puts the blame squarely on the Government, saying its disregard for adequate funding for the industry puts pressure on staff numbers at meal times.
"There are people in the higher level of care who require one-on-one help at meal times and government funding does not allow for one-on-one," he said.
It was an area where staff could feel under pressure to compromise but different facilities managed the pressures in different ways.
"At Althorp, we have volunteers and family members who assist. We monitor the weight of patients on a monthly basis and manage their individual needs.
"We wouldn't consider anyone at Althorp to be malnourished or deprived of food because we have put the systems in place to cope."
Marja O'Connor, clinical service manager at Oakland Health Rehabilitation and Aged Care, suspects elderly in their own homes are more at risk of malnutrition.
"Fiona Boyle oversees our dietary needs for our residents. We put a menu together that she oversees and adjusts, bearing in mind that elderly people don't eat properly anyway."
Of more concern was the trend to encourage elderly to stay in their own homes, with home care visitors, she said, because many would not cook themselves a meal. Oakland provides a meals-on-wheels service as well.
"We bring in extra staff at meal times, especially in the evening. We have family members come in to help with feeding if need be."
Residents are weighed monthly.
"A lot of them when they come in are frail. It's a bit of a juggle as to what you can give them that can build them up again," she said.
"There are funding issues surrounding the care of the elderly but there are things you can do to get around it. We're dealing with human beings here."
At Malyon House rest homes in Te Puke and the Mount, owner Cecily Munro said residents' food intake was monitored carefully.
"We are a small operation and this is not a problem. We don't have too much difficulty doing that."
Nell Dawson, Matua Lifecare's general manager, said Ms Boyle was part of her multi-disciplinary team so her staff members were well aware of the dangers of malnutrition.
"It's quite a complex thing. People have got rights to say they don't want such a large meal. We also have substantial morning and afternoon teas and supper."