Availability of Healthy Food and Beverages in Hospital Outlets and Interventions in the UK and USA to Improve the Hospital Food Environment: A Systematic Narrative Literature Review

Exploring the Economic Aspects of Hospitals: A Comprehensive Examination of Relevant Factors

Financial limitations in the hospital industry have the potential to exacerbate healthcare disparities, impede investments in cutting-edge medical treatments, as well as impair patient outcomes. The interdependent connection between a hospital economy and the general well-being of the community highlights the necessity of careful financial oversight and inventive healthcare policies. Effective collaboration among policymakers, healthcare administrators, and stakeholders is imperative in the development of sustainable economic models that give equal weight to fiscal prudence and optimal patient outcomes. This article aims to underscore the pivotal importance of strategic fund allocation guided by hospital administrators, accentuating several key initiatives capable of revolutionizing healthcare delivery and elevating the institution's stature within the medical community. The other important aspects discussed here are fund allocation in hospitals, the boom of online consultations, and emphasis on the use of sustainable and cost-effective modalities of energy.

Characterizing food environments of hospitals and long-term care facilities in the Netherlands: a mixed methods approach

BACKGROUND

Hospitals and long-term care facilities, which are key institutions to serve health and well-being, have an important exemplary role in providing supportive food environments to encourage healthy and sustainable food choices. The objective of this study is to characterize the physical, socio-cultural, political and economic dimensions of the food environment for health care receivers, health workforce and visitors in healthcare settings, and make comparisons between the food environment of hospitals and long-term care facilities.

METHODS

To characterize the food environment in healthcare settings, two sub-studies were conducted. In sub-study 1, semi-structured interviews were held with staff members (n = 46) representing 11 hospitals and 26 long-term care facilities (rehabilitation centres, nursing homes, institutions for people with intellectual disabilities and mental healthcare institutions). In sub-study 2, staff members audited the food environment in hospitals (n = 28) and long-term care facilities (n = 36) using a predefined checklist.

RESULTS

The food environment in Dutch healthcare settings varies substantially between locations although noticeable differences between hospitals and long-term care facilities were identified. Hospitals and larger long-term care facilities featured more often restaurants and utilized central spaces for preparation of meals, while smaller long-term care facilities often operated as household-like settings. Type of healthcare shaped the socio-cultural food environment, with hospitals primarily emphasizing nutrition for fast recovery, while long-term care facilities more often as an instrument (i.e., to structure the day). Participants highlighted the importance of food policies and broad organizational support for realizing and regulating improvement of the food environment. Yet, long-term care facilities were less familiar with national guidelines for food environments compared to hospitals. Several economical aspects, like profit motives, strict budgets and contracts with external parties affected and shaped the food available within all healthcare settings.

CONCLUSIONS

This study characterized the food environment in Dutch healthcare settings. Disclosed differences between hospitals and long-term care facilities should be incorporated in strategies for a transition of the food environment. Future research should investigate the underlying mechanisms of the healthcare food environment attaining all healthcare stakeholders - health care receivers, staff and visitors - while prioritizing sustainability alongside healthiness.

Identifying barriers and facilitators to adopting healthier dietary choices in clinical care: a cross-sectional observational study

Background and aims

Adopting healthier diets can drastically improve societal health. Our environment plays a crucial role in daily dietary choices and hospitals in particular can stimulate patients to adopt healthier eating habits. Unfortunately, no robust clinically applicable cuing tools exist to help guide in-hospital dietary interventions. The purpose of this study was to identify patient-related barriers and facilitators to adopting healthier dietary choices.

Methods and results

This cross-sectional observational study was conducted on the cardiology ward of a university medical center between June 2020 and January 2021. Of the 594 patients asked and the 312 completed surveys on healthy eating intentions, 285 responses were considered for analysis. Notably, the majority of respondents were male (68.8%), with an average hospital stay of 3.3 days. The results indicate that cardiac patients attribute significantly greater influence on their dietary behavior to doctors compared to other caregivers, including dieticians (X2 = 37.09, df = 9, p < 0.001). Also, younger patients (below 70 years of age) were more inclined to plan changing dietary behavior than older patients. Most mentioned facilitators for adopting a healthier diet were more information/counseling, help in preparing food, support from family and friends, and more emphasis from a doctor.

Conclusion

The study highlights the importance of involving doctors in formulating dietary policies and patient-directed interventions within hospital settings. It also sheds light on the barriers and facilitators for promoting healthier dietary behaviors among patients during their hospitalization.

The Role of Agricultural Systems in Teaching Kitchens: An Integrative Review and Thoughts for the Future

Diet-related chronic disease is a public health epidemic in the United States. Concurrently, conventional agricultural and food production methods deplete the nutritional content of many foods, sever connections between people and the origin of their food, and play a significant role in climate change. Paradoxically, despite an abundance of available food in the US, many households are unable to afford or attain a healthful diet. The linkages between agriculture, health, and nutrition are undeniable, yet conventional agriculture and healthcare systems tend to operate in silos, compounding these pressing challenges. Operating teaching kitchens in collaboration with local agriculture, including farms, community gardens, vertical farms, and urban agriculture, has the potential to catalyze a movement that emphasizes the role of the food system in promoting human and planetary health, building resilient communities, and encouraging cross-disciplinary collaboration. This paper reviews the current state of agricultural systems, food is medicine, consumer behavior, and the roles within these sectors. This is followed by a series of case studies that fill the gaps between TKs and agriculture. The authors summarize opportunities to combine the knowledge and resources of teaching kitchens and agriculture programs, as well as challenges that may arise along the way.