Keep yourself fed and watered, says Health Board

HYWEL Dda University Health Board will be taking part in a worldwide afternoon tea to promote the importance of nutrition and hydration.
The afternoon tea is part of a National ‘Nutrition and Hydration Week’ and is helping to highlight the work University Health Board staff do every day in helping to improve nutritional intake.
Many patients in hospital or the wider community have a poor appetite because of their illness, so making sure all foods and drinks are as nourishing as possible helps ensure patients meet their nutritional needs, which in turn supports recovery and well being.
On Wednesday 18 March some wards in hospitals and care homes across the Hywel Dda University Health Board area will be taking part in ‘Time for Tea’ which includes a variety of activities and themes alongside the main focus of an afternoon tea party.
Karen Thomas, Joint Head of Dietetics, said: “The activities promote the importance of good nutrition and hydration; it is a valuable opportunity for us to remind patients and visitors about how important it is to eat well, especially when poorly. ‘Tea time’ can also be an important social activity which may encourage people with a poor appetite to eat better.
“Across the University Health Board we have been gradually introducing the new All Wales Menu Framework. This includes tasty, nutritionally tried and tested recipes that meet the Welsh Government hospital catering and nutrition standards. The menus are aimed at providing a range of meals to meet all patients needs and to entice people to eat as well as possible – good nutrition really does aid recovery and can help to get patients home quicker.
“As part of the week’s activities catering, dietetic and nursing staff will be promoting the importance of snacks being available between meals, especially for patients who are at risk of malnutrition or have a poor appetite. Where possible we promote ‘Food First’ to support patients who are not eating well – having a small snack and a nourishing drink between meals can help to ensure patients who may not manage a full meal can still meet their nutritional needs.
“The dietetic team also provide education and training for health and social care teams in the community aiming to optimise knowledge about the risks associated with malnutrition, to enable them to undertake nutritional risk screening and provide first line advice to patients on the ‘Food First approach’ to improving nutrition.”
For more information please go to http://nutritionandhydrationweek. co.uk/ or for the latest news and updates from Hywel Dda University Health Board visitwww.hywelddahb. wales.nhs.uk