Course Goals:

Dining programs in the long-term care setting are critical for many reasons to include assuring all residents receive the clinical attention to address their variety of deficits, preventing further declines in function, assuring residents' nutritional needs are met, providing the levels of customer service that was promised and meeting the multiple compliance requirements from a regulatory standpoint. Yet even when the team works to develop a rehab dining program, there are multiple challenges that are often met along the way. 

While each community or facility will have their own unique variables, certain challenges are frequently inevitable; without a plan to address these challenges, the best intentions may lead to failure or to less than ideal results.  This course will address the clinical and regulatory components that should be included in a rehab dining program, with multiple factors considered.  Eight common challenges will be addressed to include the recommended solutions for each. With such initiatives in place, the interprofessional teamwork will be set up for success to achieve all rehab dining program goals.

Learning Outcomes:

Upon the completion of this course, the learner will be able to: 

• Cite the regulatory Federal Tags (F-TAGs) relative to rehab dining services in Long Term Care  
• Explain the recommended protocols to be included when defining a rehab dining program 
• Discuss common challenges and solutions related to therapist productivity requirements and facility staff buy in 
• Differentiate effective steps to working through staff resistance when developing a new program 
• Discuss diet textures and levels, based on International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative (IDDSI) and National Dysphagia Diet protocols 
• Categorize factors to consider when developing criteria for admission to a rehab dining program 
• Discuss the roles of each member of the nutrition team