Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between changes in the Department of Nutrition and patient satisfaction, following the changes in Food Services Management. Statistical data analyses were completed using the SAS/Win 6.12 program. The results can be summarized as follows. The working environment for dietitians and cooking and meal serving assistants was improved following to a change catering of food service management. The number of dietitians who worked in medical nutritional therapy and food services was increased from one to four, and the number of dietary consultations and meal rounds were increased 2.5-fold and 5-fold, respectively after the change services were implemented. Among the 10 items included in the patient satisfaction questionnaire, "Taste of meals" (p < 0.01) and "Satisfaction of offered menus" (p < 0.01) showed significantly higher scores before the catering. "Kindness of meal serving assistant" this increase was not statistically significant, showed increased satisfaction after the catering, however.

• Keywords: catering; dietitian; medical nutritional therapy; food services management