Many long-term care communities are finding ways to cut expenses yet benefit their residents at the same time. One of those improvements is investing in a garden. An area is set aside for residents to participate in the gardening program of planting, maintaining, and reaping vegetables, fruits, and herbs due to their input. The kitchen is much rewarded with fresh vegetables, fruits, and herbs that retain their nutrition because they are as fresh as possible. The herbs are used to enhance the flavor of the food and garnish to add eye appeal to any lagging appetites that may linger among the residents. Some communities have further invested in bringing a small portion of their garden indoors under controlled lighting and watering to produce fresh vegetables. The investment pays for itself at harvest time and in the interest of some residents who receive joy from being part of the growing season. Everyone is rewarded.

Invest in Farm-to-Table connections wherever possible. Buying locally and building meaningful relationships through agriculture creates solid foundations with food suppliers from your community. Because local foods are not stored and shipped great distances, they are sent in peak quality conditions resulting in more nutrients when your chef makes use of them. Certainly, that is a grand benefit for the residents. Foods imported fresh, including meat, from great distances require freezing or additives to preserve them. It is safer to rely on a source closer at hand that is known by reputation. The revenue spent on Farm-to-Table connections from the kitchen creates and supports partnerships in your community.

To round out these improvements, you want to have an accomplished food serving team to adapt and easily manage problems that arise and will impress your residents.  A confident, multi-talented, and highly-skilled team that works closely with staff across departments. A community-wide team that can pass state and federal person-centered care surveys. A team that enhances the nursing home culture and dining experience for everyone involved.

Kind Dining♥ is a motivating, experiential, on-demand, trainer-led, nine-module eLearning training series. It’s designed uniquely to optimize the quality of life for older adults and quality-of-work for staff respectively in senior living communities at all levels of care. Our curriculum is designed to assist companies that don’t have time or resources to create their training or need a supplement to their current offerings. The foundation of Kind Dining♥ is rooted in putting residents first, raising service standards, and embracing relational service principles to improve community diners’ nutritional health and well-being. We teach principles around communication, team building, personalizing the dining experience, civility, and our unique hospitality brand.  We also deliver wise investment consultations by phone and Zoom meetings.

B♥ Kind Tip: Is the time right to improve your community?