Category: Healthcare

Everyone has a style of speaking, and it is easy to overlook the importance of language when communicating with other people. The reality is that words matter. There is a lot of jargon that people pick up no matter what industry they are in, and this is just as true in healthcare as it is in any other field. In particular, there are many people who use terms in long-term healthcare that can have a negative impact on residents, patients, and their families.

During the past few years, there has been an increased focus on how word choice impacts the work environment and the behavior of those around us. For example, many people now call prisons corrections centers, and janitors are now called environmental service professionals. There has also been a shift in how long-term care facilities, or nursing homes, are addressed. It is critical to make these environments feel more like homes instead of care centers, and language is a part of this.

How to Remind Team Members of the Language Shift

So, what can be done to help team members remember that there is a shift in how they are supposed to refer to long-term healthcare facilities? A few key tips to keep in mind include:

• Do not call these residential communities facilities. Instead, call them homes or communities.
• It is important to refer to people by name. Do not refer to residents by their diagnosis, and do not refer to employees by their job titles.
• Do everything possible to avoid using medical terminology when communicating with residents.
• Do not bark out orders to people. Instead, explain why they are important.

Furthermore, it is critical to use people-first language. This means that people need to be addressed as people before diving into the details. Instead of saying “handicapped person,” say “person who uses a wheelchair,” or whatever the disability might be.

Examples of Terms That Need to Be Changed

It is also helpful to take a look at a few examples of terms that need to be changed. They include:

• Instead of calling someone a complainer, refer to that individual as a person with concerns.
• Instead of talking about open beds, talk about the people who live there.
• Instead of referring to someone as a new admission, refer to this as the move-in process.
• Instead of allowing someone to do something, encourage them to do something.
• Instead of saying someone has expired, say that someone passed away.

Even though these might seem like small changes, they can make a significant difference to people who live in these homes and the people who work there. The goal is to make the environment feel more like home instead of a medical facility. Making changes in how people talk in these locations can do exactly that.

Use the SuzyQ Food Serving Cart to De-Institutionalize Senior Care Foodservice

One of the best ways to further encourage people to make changes in how they interact with others in senior living communities is to change the way food is served. The SuzyQ Food Serving Cart can do exactly that. Unfortunately, there are a lot of senior living centers that continue to serve food from a cart that looks like it belongs in the hospital. That is not the best way to make people feel like they are living in a new home. Instead, it is important to use a cart that looks more like what people might find in their own homes. Using a cart such as the SuzyQ Cart can de-institutionalize long-term care foodservice.

Every senior living home is different. Every home has a slightly different number of residents, each of whom has slightly different needs. Some residents live very independent lives, while others might be partially or fully dependent on someone else for their daily care. Regardless, everyone needs to eat, and this includes those who live in senior living communities. That is exactly where the SuzyQ Foodservice Cart can be helpful. This is a cart that comes with a wide variety of options that can be customized to meet the needs of the residents and the person serving the food. There are several customizable options that everyone should know.

The SuzyQ Cart Serves Hot and Cold Meals

One of the first benefits of the SuzyQ cart is that it can serve hot and cold meals. The wells can be customized to meet the needs of the food, and this creates a lot of options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. For example, it is possible for someone to serve both hot eggs and cold yogurt or fruit during breakfast. The same can be said of lunch and dinner.

The Cart Comes With Multiple Options for Well Depth

The pans can be customized in-depth to meet the needs of the meal as well. One of the most popular options, the 4-inch pans, hold a lot of food, and the food will not turn crusty or stale during the serving process.

On the other hand, 6- or 8-inch pans might be a bit too deep, because the food can turn crusty and get stuck to the bottom, which is not the most appetizing choice. There might even be situations in which a 2-inch pan might be better because the food is even less likely to get stuck or turn crusty.

The only time a deeper pan might be better is if there is a soup or sauce. If it is the middle of winter and a lot of soup is being served, then a deeper pan might be an option. The soup will be moving around in the pan, and it will stay fresh.

There is also the option to use ninth pans, which are smaller, deeper pans. These are better for modified diets and purées. If there is something that needs to be in the pan for only a few servings, a ninth might be a good option.

It is also possible to use a long, thin hotel pan with the SuzyQ Foodservice Delivery Cart. This is great when senior homes want to show off something delicious on the cart. The tray runs the length of the delivery cart, and it looks very pretty. The ability to customize the pans in the SuzyQ Meal Delivery Cart makes it easier for senior living communities to customize the cart to meet their needs.

The Benefits of the SuzyQ Cart

There are a number of significant benefits that come from using this cart. They include:

• Using them allows senior living communities to reduce food waste because residents have control over what they want to eat.
• These carts make it easier for staff members to interact with residents, creating a more engaged labor force.
• The cart has been specifically designed to reduce back-and-forth trips to save time while serving food.
• Ultimately, the food tastes better, and residents are happier. This leads to increased satisfaction all around, creating a powerful marketing tool.

These are just a few of the many benefits that come from using the SuzyQ Cart. Every senior living community is different, and it is possible to customize this cart to meet the needs of the senior care foodservice community.

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Everyone loves a good story, and pretty much every successful business solution is rooted in one. For the SuzyQ food delivery cart, that is certainly true, as well.

What is the SuzyQ?

To quickly recap, the SuzyQ food delivery cart is a solution designed around the notion of self-determined foodservice in senior care communities. When you provide the option for residents to choose rather than having pre-plated servings placed before them, there is a wide range of benefits both for diners and for operators.

First, senior care residents get to choose, and for this demographic, choice is something that is often taken away. Giving choice at mealtimes is a great way to help maintain the all-important element of control.

Second, allowing residents to choose reduces food waste, as they only select the menu options they really desire. This helps the overall bottom line because food is not wasted, and therefore, money is not wasted.

Finally, with self-determined meal service in a SuzyQ, the food delivery cart is actually wheeled through the dining room creating points of interaction between residents and foodservice staff. These relationships are important because they make for happier seniors and more fulfilled staff.

In reality, there are many more benefits to using a SuzyQ food delivery cart, but this article isn’t about why senior care community foodservice operators should consider using one. It’s about why it was created in the first place. So, let us introduce you to Suzanne Quiring.

The SuzyQ was invented by Suzanne Quiring, a dietician and foodservice manager who worked in residential care. She saw the drawbacks of traditional service where staff cooked meals and had service staff run plated food back and forth from a pick-up window to the residents’ tables. She also knew there was a better way than serving cold food and dealing with food preference lists.

Quiring went on a journey to create a new solution, and the result is the SuzyQ. Based on the idea of a rolling service cart on an airplane where flight attendants ask what beverage you’d like, Quiring asked the question, “Why can’t we do that in the dining room?” Rooted in years of service that resulted in unhappy residents and wasted food, the SuzyQ food delivery cart rolled onto the scene and created a new way of foodservice delivery – the self-determined meal.

The SuzyQ actually began with beverages. Rather than pre-pouring drinks before guests arrive resulting in warm milk, she decided to roll a beverage cart through the dining room offering on-demand beverages. The residents loved it, and a dessert cart was included next. Finally, the idea shifted to full meal delivery, and the SuzyQ was invented, finally allowing senior care residents to hand-select the foods they want, served warm and at ideal serving conditions.