Noble’s Hospital is this week promoting the importance of eating and drinking well for patients as they recover from illness.
To publicise the campaign, the hospital will hold a number of events and activities to educate people about the dangers of poor nutrition and dehydration. The idea is also to promote good practice in the hospital.
This is the fourth year the campaign has run and it takes place in conjunction with Patient Safety First, a national organisation which instigated the idea in the UK as a means of improving patient care.
Poor nutrition is recognised as a cause of disease but can also occur as a result of illness. One quarter of hospital admissions has a connection with poor nutrition.
Malnutrition has been estimated to affect 5 per cent of the population in the UK who are either malnourished or at risk of malnutrition.
As part of the campaign, the hospital will provide information about healthy diets and how to recognise signs poor nutrition or dehydration.
Other national associations that have been involved in the campaign include the National Association of Care Catering and the Hospital Catering Association.
Research has shown people who eat well recover from illnesses more quickly and well nourished people enjoy a better quality of life. Malnutrition is most common in old people .