That old people deserve nice food.

[sweethope]

This photo was took by a relative of someone in a care home for the elderly of a meal given today.. Aibu to say old people much better than that.

I don't believe this.There are very strict nutritional uidelines for care homes as well as catering for various diets and textures of food

Yes, because guidelines are never ignored and all care providers act at all times in a way that the CQC would thoroughly approve of

I don't believe this.There are very strict nutritional uidelines for care homes as well as catering for various diets and textures of food.

Seriously? 😳

I’ve worked in a home where the staff were so pulled out they used to just give a complan drink to some of the residents as it took too long to feed them. They also used to omit feeding them by writing ‘asleep’ on their chart

People have no idea how bad these places can be.

There is NO excuse for not even one vegetable. They're cheap enough.

Maybe there was veg, she didn’t want it and they knew from experience to give her what she wants and not risk the fuss. Or maybe she loves veg and to her this is a shit meal. We have no idea based on that picture.

As I said above I am packing the veg in now in an attempt to stay healthy enough so that when I’m that age I can put up an attack if someone tries to foist veg onto me.

It’s a societal issue though. I get the impression people don’t really want their relatives to live too long in care homes as it eats into their inheritance, they ease their own conscious by mosning about the lack of standards in these places. Society as s whole has little respect for anyone working in the care industry and that is why it as seen as such a lowly job to do and conditions are so poor. Most people have no desire whatsoever to give their own relatives personal care like in the old days. Food is poor but why would a really good chef want to work in a care home?
Hasn’t Jamie Oliver gone bust anyway.

I know nothing of the care home or lady involved, so can only tell you about my own mum. She used to love food, eat all sorts of cuisines, keen home cook, everything local/seasonal and from scratch.

Dementia has taken her ability to recognise food and now she will eat a very, very limited selection of things that must be presented without any adornment or change else it gets left or flicked. So it's kids cod goujons, thick chips and a small corn on the cob (not sweetcorn, she had a tantrum about that). Every day. No fruit or veg, and she will only drink water or coffee in a Waitrose disposable cup (which is an issue now).
So I don't judge as this, ice cream, and Yum Yums make up her entire diet and shes now maintaining weight after getting incredibly thin.

I'm looking forward to a diet consisting exclusively of chocolate truffles if I lose my marbles.

My experience of hospital food is varied. Our local fairly large general hospital serves very poor food (my mum was in for months so we got to see it consistently over many weeks and it was poor). They could not meet the dietician's recommendation for my mum's high calorie diet. E.g. Dietician recommended full fat milk and hospital only served skimmed. Patients not allowed to use staff fridges to keep milk in so we couldn't even leave her full fat milk from home. She was under 6 stone following chemo and literally starving to death and they couldn't find a way to give her full fat milk. As milk was one of the few food items she could eat / drink it was hugely important. As it was my Dad went in before he started work everyday with a flask of cold milk, my sister went in with another at lunchtime and I went in in the evening with more. We also took in food that she fancied in tried to cater for her individual needs.

Christies in Manchester couldn't have been more opposite. Mum's food was made to order in the ward kitchen to her specifications using high quality and high fat foods. Surprisingly she lost far less weight in there than our local.

This particular meal may have circumstances that mean it isn't as bad as it looks. However care home and hospital catering is at best a mixed bag and at worst diabolical.

Happypavlova, you're witty I'm sure, but people on this thread will have to make their own mind up whether that looks like an acceptable meal or not. Many of us don't think so, including the regulatory body, it seems.

If the person asked for one slice of ham and a few chips then it's ok but the chips look a bit dry. If that was what they were given without any choice then it's shite. Carehomes usually display menus and you can always ask to speak to the manager or the chef to see what food they offer, they have to comply with certain standards including allergies. Reporting to the c.q.c. can start a chain of investigation into the food, weight, nutrition standard.

This is in the daily fail today. You can just put ham and chips carehome into Google and find several newspaper articles.

@knittedwoollenmouse hopefully you reported that.

My first job when I came to live in the U.K. was being a carer. I didn't last 4 weeks and left to work in a warehouse instead as I couldn't believe the type of care the residents got. It broke my heart and coupled with African family background, I struggled to understand why people would put their parents in care. I now understand (to an extent). This food is unacceptable

I remember being told not to offer sandwiches or snacks to residents who didn't want a full meal or didn't like what was on the menu and that if they wanted something like an omelette to say they'd run out of eggs, same sort of story as this one and the company is the same name.

headstone i agree that care workers should be paid more Much more. No one on this thread is blaming them.

as for the comment "most people have no desire to give relatives personal care like in the old days"

You mean women. Because it was women being expected to do it and still is Well now most women have to go out to work. Because most familes cant afford to have the woman in the home not working.

Do you even know how much Carers Allowance is? Its a pittance

Not only that but I defy anyone, no matter how devoted, to provide 24 hour care.

**Helenadove I don’t think it’s because women are working. I work on a stroke ward and I’ve seen male relatives agree take on the caring responsibility so that the parent avoids a nursing home.
However the majority of people boak at the idea of having to clean bottoms, even spoon feeding is too much for them. I’ve seen relatives refuse to reenter a room after a relative has had a bowel movement due to the smell.
Relatives all want free hospital parking yet when it’s explained we only give that to those with caring responsibilities like feeding they say ‘no I won’t do any of that’.

I know people who have taken elderly relatives home though, even those requiring the use of a hoist. It can be done.

Crikey. That's appalling. The care home I worked at had questionable night staff, but their
Food was always home cooked to a high standard.

Though, I did once work in another one, in the kitchen and they stopped home cooking from scratch, using the local butcher etc, in favour of Asda smart price. I didn't stay long ...

You're pretty damn presumptuous, Headstone. My parents would have hated me wiping their bottoms, hated it. I worked when mine needed 24 hour care, there was nobody except me and I couldn't do it. Who would have paid my mortgage? How could I have looked after them 24/7?

It's all right for you walking away at the end of your shift, people with dependent relatives don't have that option. Don't judge people when you have no idea what their circumstances are.

I’m not talking about you blue lady , I don’t know your situation. I just wish as a society people would take on more of the care for their elderly relatives. I think it would be a better society.

But you are talking about people exactly like me. You can wish all you like, there are many old people who would prefer to be cared for by professionals. And my parents flourished in their care home with kind, friendly people around all the time. Being stuck at home alone is complete shit for a lot of old people.

I love Olivander's posts too. That 'meal' makes me so sad. How many elderly people would have enough jaw power or stable teeth to gnaw bits of those chips!

The whole system needs one hell of a shake up and an efficient and consistent regulatory body to police it.

Im not talking about people like you blue lady. You are taking it personally. You presumably have no problem providing your parents with care but we’re not able because you had to keep working in order to pay the mortgage . I understand that. Presumably there are families with power of attorney who would be able to use their parent’s money in order for them to be cared for at home. Surely it’s better than giving these ghastly care homes vast sums of money that only line the owner’s pocket. I’m glad your parents went to a nice home, grandparents are in a nice home too. However there will never be enough nice care homes.

Maybe we ought to focus on making sure there are enough nice care homes rather than having unrealistic expectations of people who don't have the skills or training to provide care.

I have MH problems and two small children (one with SN). How would I also cope with caring for a mentally unstable, incontinent, physically disabled adult taller and heavier than me (as both my parents are) and doing it well?

What you want, headstone, is a return to ye olden days when women would break their backs looking after the elderly as well as the babies and doing all the cooking and cleaning.