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Nutrition and the mealtime experience
Many families see the kitchen as the heart of the home and this is certainly the case at Carebase. It’s at mealtimes that our homes come to life.
We are passionate about serving varied and delicious cuisine for our residents, freshly prepared on site. Our chefs carefully create menus that are flavoursome, visibly appealing and packed full of nutrients. This is essential for our residents to stay happy and healthy.
Menu of choice
Our menus constantly change, particularly over the seasons, and always feature fruit and vegetables when they are at their freshest. Of course, we still feature firm favourites that our residents know and love. Our food is of restaurant quality, which also includes traditional and popular best of British dishes.
We provide three meals a day, as well as morning coffee and biscuits, afternoon tea with homemade cakes and a hot bedtime drink with an optional light snack. There are also plenty of nutritious snacks, like teacakes, malt loaf, sandwiches and fruit, available on request day or night. Residents are offered a glass of sherry, wine or beer with lunch or dinner. Every Wednesday, our homes have a traditional afternoon tea, which is a great opportunity for residents to come together and enjoy a sumptuous spread of delicious sandwiches and homemade cakes.
There is no need to pre-order meals the night before. Residents can make a decision on the day, depending on what takes their fancy. Dishes are shown plated up, as well as on menus, so our residents can make a more informed choice.
Our dementia residents are constantly on the move so grazing can work better for them. We lay out snacks in our homes and make nutritious drinks readily available so they can recoup their energy at all times of the day.
We cater for different dietary requirements, taking into account residents likes and dislikes, meeting the needs of those with food allergies or respecting diets based on moral or religious beliefs. Purchasing specialist meat or kosher products can be arranged as required and our kitchen teams are trained to meet the different food preparation needs of individual cultures and religions.
Health benefits
To minimise potential health problems, a good diet and physical activity is important. The efficiency of a body can decrease the older we get. The ability to digest and process food slows down, as does the metabolic rate. Our residents are encouraged to eat foods that are rich in starch and fibre, high in iron, vitamin C and D, Folic Acid, potassium and calcium. Our homes also actively employ a low salt approach in their cooking.
We ensure menus offer carbohydrates, which is a good source of energy and provides most of our fibre. Oats and pulses are particularly good at reducing the amount of cholesterol in our blood. While wholegrain bread or brown rice help keep bowels healthy. We offer many calcium filled foods, good for strengthening the bones and helping to prevent Osteoporosis. Cheese and biscuits are offered as a dessert option for example, while Horlicks, Ovaltine and drinking chocolate are a great way of supplementing the diet of a resident who doesn’t have a big appetite.
We abide by strict food health and safety guidelines, with regular monitoring and recording of food storage, cooking and serving temperatures at all times. All of our chefs have achieved level 3 Food Safety for Supervisors.
Hydration is essential for the health and wellbeing of our residents. Being well hydrated can help to prevent and alleviate confusion. We support and encourage our residents to drink between 8 to 10 cups of fluid per day.
The mealtime experience
Each meal is designed to be an experience in itself. From start to finish, we try to involve residents as much as possible, helping with preparation, laying the table and even the washing up. You would be surprised how many residents take pleasure in this as much as in the socialising each mealtime offers.
Staff sit down and eat with residents, helping to make mealtimes a great social experience and family and friends are welcome to join us for meals anytime. We encourage discussion by getting out recipe books prior to meals, which is particularly enjoyable to those that hold an interest in cooking. We celebrate every birthday with a delicious home-baked cake and new residents are very welcome to hold a housewarming tea party for family and fellow residents.
Our dining rooms are designed to be elegant, warm and welcoming. Tables are laid with pretty linen tablecloths and napkins, polished silver cutlery, bone china and freshly cut flowers.
Whatever the meal, presentation is important. Residents who have difficulty eating whole fruit and vegetables can have them stewed, pureed or made into soups and we make every effort to present these in a more appetising way. Fish in parsley sauce, for example, would be shaped using a fish mould, with potatoes croquettes and green vegetable formed into individual balls.
Independent eating is encouraged for as long as possible and we have a wide range of useful accessories to help residents maintain their dignity. However, our carers are ready to offer assistance to residents whenever needed in a discreet and sensitive manner.
