Restorative Programs: Dining and Feeding for the Licensed Nurse

Course overview

While the primary purpose of eating is to provide our bodies with essential nutrients that improve overall health, eating also serves as a means of socialization and is a source of joy and pleasure for many. Because the ability to eat independently is one of the most basic skills learned at an early age, losing this ability can lead to feeling a loss of control, independence, and self-worth. It can also negatively affect residents nutritional status. It is important to promote residents ability to feed themselves as independently as possible by utilizing restorative nursing programs. While you may not be the one actively helping residents eat, you are responsible for overseeing restorative programs that address eating and thus will benefit from this course. The goal of this course is to present nurses in skilled nursing facility settings with factors that affect nutritional intake and provide the elements of restorative dining and restorative eating programs.