PD182 - “FEED THE PATIENT”: PILOTING A NEW HOSPITAL-BASED INDIVIDUALIZED FEEDING PROGRAMME ADDRESSING DISEASE-RELATED MALNUTRITION IN THE NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE, SRI LANKA
PD182
“FEED THE PATIENT”: PILOTING A NEW HOSPITAL-BASED INDIVIDUALIZED FEEDING PROGRAMME ADDRESSING DISEASE-RELATED MALNUTRITION IN THE NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE, SRI LANKA
T. D. Wickramasekara1,*, S. Mallawaarachchi2, P. Mallawarachchi3, N. Herath4, J. Jayaweera5, H. Amarathunga1, H. Manikgamaarchchi1, A. Perera1, N. De Alwis1, H. Thilakasiri1, N. Peries6
1Nutrition, Medical Research Institute, Colombo, 2Nutrition, National Cancer Institute, Maharagama, 3Nutrition, Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children , 4Nutrition, National Hospital of Sri Lanka, 5Nutrition, Colombo South Teaching Hospital, Colombo, 6Medical Education, University of Moratuwa, Moratuwa, Sri Lanka
Rationale: Disease-related malnutrition is high among hospitalized patients, particularly in cancer, due to multifactorial causes including reduced intake, treatment-related side effects, psychological factors, leading to increased morbidity & mortality. This programme was initiated to minimize disease-related malnutrition through free individualized feeding in a public hospital of a developing country.
Methods: After conceptualizing & planning, funding was secured through donors to upgrade the hospital kitchen and staff training. Then it was implemented at the National Cancer Institute as a 3-month pilot with sustainable solutions to continue the service. Prior to this intervention, patients either relied on what is being served from the hospital or had to seek externally provided meals, yet were not aligned with nutritional requirements or treatment-related needs. All inpatients underwent nutritional assessment for tailored meals according to energy & protein requirements, clinical condition, treatment status & patient preference. Data on meal satisfaction, dietary intake, short-term outcomes were collected. A total of 300 patients were included for the pilot phase; feedback was taken during the interventions & analyzed qualitatively.
Results: Many (95%) patients reported high satisfaction with the new hospital-provided meals. Feedback from patients, caregivers, and health staff indicated improved adequacy and acceptability of meals. The programme was successfully integrated into the routine hospital workflow, demonstrating feasibility.
Conclusion: This pilot demonstrates that an individualized feeding programme is feasible and acceptable even in a public hospital of a developing country, with potential to reduce disease-related malnutrition. The findings support further follow up studies and scale-up in the public health system in Sri Lanka.
Disclosure of Interest: None declared