Council on Aging Answers 2015 - 71

COUNCIL ON AGING - ORANGE COUNTY

the traditional finger food experience.
The food might look different, but the presentation and taste are maintained. Sometimes aromatics are also used to incite the senses of memory care
residents before eating.

The Residents
expressed
more
enjoyment
of their
meals, and
a renewed
sense of
anticipation
at mealtimes.

The Menu
The Grind Dining concept
includes a training component
where the Grind team works with
a community's dining services
team to analyze and rearrange
the menu and come up with new
takes on menu components.
The equipment, which usually
requires little more than a food
grinder, is usually already on site
with the food costs already built
in. The team then develops menu
extensions for each meal service
and provides menu direction
such as portions, vegetable garnishes and photos of completed
meals. The menu doesn't change, but one menu
item is converted a la Grind Dining's method and
technique.
"It's usually not an easy finger food conversion,"
Gorham says. "It might be brisket, or spaghetti and
meatballs. Once we develop those extensions, we
put together a tool kit for the community to train."
To get around the lack of utensils often demanded by memory care units, Grind Dining utilizes
lollipop sticks, Popsicle sticks and other disposable
tools that can help a resident enjoy a meal without
Council On Aging-Orange County | 714-479-0107 | www.coaoc.org

The Result
The outcome from the Grind
Dining pilot and implementation
was several-fold. Resident family
members reported that the residents expressed more enjoyment
of their meals, a renewed sense of
anticipation at mealtimes, were
more engaged and had responded
favorably to the new menu offerings. Likewise, caregivers reported improved experience during
meal times and residents needing
a lot less help than they had previously.
Some communities have rolled
out the program to other residents as well. "Every community
is different," said Gorham. "Some
said this was designed for memory care, but others found it to
be so successful they rolled it out
into their main dining rooms. It
meets their dental needs and nutrition needs."
Ultimately the program has
worked best when it gains the
buy-in of the entire community,
regardless of need. Comparison plates have showed
that the taste can be maintained even if the format
has changed.
"Grind dining can be used as a point of distinction," Gorham says. "Dining is an important consideration."
Article reprinted from Senior Living Executive
Magazine May/June 2014 www.seniorhousingnews.
com/2014/04/30 dished-grind-dining-redefinesmenus-memory-care
Answers Guide 2015

hOUSING

grind cooked traditional food items to preserve
taste, texture, and composition of the menu items
for residents.
The team also leaned on research from the University of Alabama and Harvard University that
found cooked and ground proteins were 24% more digestible
than just cooked or raw proteins.
They began adding carbohydrates
and vegetables for complete
meals that were nutritionally
complete and didn't require eating with a fork, knife, spoon, or
require chewing in order to consume. The anthropologists and
scientists used Burmese Pythons
for their research due to the fact
that the pythons don't have teeth.

http://www.seniorhousingnews.com/2014/04/30/dished-grind-dining-redefines-menus-memory-care http://www.seniorhousingnews.com/2014/04/30/dished-grind-dining-redefines-menus-memory-care http://www.seniorhousingnews.com/2014/04/30/dished-grind-dining-redefines-menus-memory-care http://www.coaoc.org

Council on Aging Answers 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Council on Aging Answers 2015