By Staff Reports
(Honolulu)– Kaiser Permanente Hawaii has introduced a new keiki room service menu for patients staying at the Moanalua Medical Center’s pediatric unit. Serving to improve care services to pediatric patients, the new menu was a collaborative project between pediatric patients, their families and medical staff, and was spearheaded by Kaiser Permanente’s Food and Nutrition Services team.
“We are excited to introduce our first keiki menu specifically geared to our patients who are staying in the pediatric unit at our Moanalua Medical Center,” said Carolyn Caballes, R.D., Director of Kaiser Permanente’s Food and Nutrition Services. “The new menu was developed as part of our Patient and Family Centered Care (PFCC) practice in which our staff, patients and families are partners, working together to best meet the needs of our patients. We know that excellence in health care happens when we collaborate and honor each other’s perspectives and choices.” Working with PFCC, Kaiser Permanente’s Food and Nutrition Services team developed a sampling of a variety of potential menu items based on solicited ideas and comments from pediatric patients and their families. A taste-testing event was held to provide PFCC members and patients the opportunity to sample, provide input, and vote on most and least favorite items.
The new menu was developed based on this feedback and features a wide selection of over 60 items in the categories of beverages, breakfast items, lunch and dinner entrees, sandwiches, salads, soups, grill items, sides, desserts and even condiments. Selections include everything from buttermilk or chocolate chip pancakes, teri mahi or chicken stir fry rice bowls, loco moco, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, Korean barbecue chicken and somen salad to miso soup, mashed potatoes with gravy, poi, baked chips, shortbread cookies and haupia cake. The menu also features student artwork by 4th graders at Le Jardin Academy in Kailua and puzzles for keiki patients to enjoy. “Food and good nutrition plays an important role in the healing process,” said Martin Piette, MD, a pediatrician with Kaiser Permanente.
“Children need to eat every three to four hours – three meals, two snacks and lots of fluids – and it can be very difficult to strike the balance between providing meal versatility, nutrition and foods that kids will actually eat, which, with the help of children’s input, this menu does.” Last fall, Kaiser Permanente’s Moanalua Medical Center was the first hospital in Hawaii to offer a full-menu room service program. The room service program allows patients to call in their orders from a menu and have food prepared and delivered to their rooms within 45 minutes – hot and fresh – rather than having three standard meals delivered at set times each day from large batches of food that are prepared offsite and parceled up at a set time for the entire hospital. Similar to the keiki menu program, the room service program’s goal is to increase patient satisfaction and improve healthy eating habits so patients heal faster.
Kaiser Permanente Hawaii has provided total health to the people of Hawaii for more than 50 years, with physicians who are members of the Hawaii Permanente Medical Group, the largest multi-specialty physician group practice in the state of Hawaii. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. Visit kp.org for additional information, become a fan of good health at Facebook.com/KPHawaii or follow @KPHawaii on Twitter.