| Abstract: | ? Concern is growing about the occurrence of malnutrition in hospitals throughout the developed world. Reduced involvement of nurses in patients' nutritional care may be one of the contributing factors. ? This study explored nurses' attitudes and knowledge about nutrition and food service in hospital. ? Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven nurses from the internal medical service of a large Australian acute care hospital. ? Analysis of the interview transcripts revealed that many nurses lacked the in-depth knowledge needed to give proper nutritional care to their patients. ? Although nurses considered nutritional care to be important many had difficulty in raising its priority above other nursing activities, as a result of time constraints and multitasking issues. ? Several problems relating to food service arrangements were also highlighted. ? The findings suggest a need to raise nurses' awareness of the importance of nutrition in patient outcome. ? This study provides information which will guide in-service nurse education programs about nutrition, and suggests strategies for practice and organizational change. |
