Hospitals go gourmet, offering fresh, new cuisine

Welcome to hospital food nouveau, where menus tout salmon with cucumber and melon relish. Or chocolate chip pancakes. Reservations not required.

A growing number of hospitals are moving to hotel-style room service for patients.

"I think people have that perception before they even come into the hospital, 'Oh, it's hospital food. I know it's going to be bad,"' said Mary Ann Moser, director of food and nutrition services for Medical City Dallas Hospital in Dallas, which recently began its new food service.

The hospital serves about 350 meals each breakfast, lunch and dinner. Patients can call from 6:45 a.m. to 7 p.m. to place orders for food that is prepared fresh and delivered to their rooms within 45 minutes.

"Patient satisfaction was really a key for us," Moser said.

Trying to lure patients and keep them happy in a competitive market is what inspired hospitals across the nation to start banishing bland food served at set times.

"It's kind of a trend of placing the patient in the center of what a hospital does," said Alicia Mitchell, a spokeswoman for the American Hospital Association. "This is one example of a hospital offering more choice."

The National Society for Health Care Food Service Management is surveying hospitals to find out how many now offer menu or gourmet service, said Mike Giuffrida, chief executive for the Washington-based trade group.

He said the trend began about seven years ago, but in the last 18 months "it's become an absolute avalanche."

In Cape Girardeau, St. Francis Medical Center offers parents of newborn babies a special dinner of steak and lobster, to celebrate the new addition to their family. Meanwhile, other patients partake of Cajun catfish, grilled chicken romano and roast top round.

Accross town at Southeast Missouri Hospital, the new addition to their building is designed to offer patients a little more in the way of creature comfort. Although the hospital isn't offering gourmet room service, the rooms of the new Harrison Annex are designed to be more private, resembling comfortable hotel accommodations with many featuring 27-inch television sets, DVD players, baths with showers and hair dryers.

Less waste

At Medical City, there is no extra charge to the patient for the improved food. Hospital officials say there are savings by having less wasted food. And they hope to entice visitors to become paying customers.

Patients may choose from 22 different menus.

"We had one patient call that said that it was some of the best food they'd ever tasted," Moser said. "And it made their experience much better in the hospital."

That's exactly what chef Kenneth Furtado wants to hear. "I really want them to feel like they are in a five-star hotel," he said.

The selection at Medical City inspired Brian Matlock, 25, to join his wife for lunch in her hospital room the day after she gave birth to their daughter.

"He definitely wasn't interested in what I had yesterday," said Mindy Matlock, 24, whose stay overlapped with Medical City's switch to the new menu service. The first day Matlock had cold sandwiches.

The next day she and her husband enjoyed chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes, green beans and chocolate cake.

Staff writer Tony Rehagen contributed to this report.