Evaluation of an Advanced Preparation Hospital Food Service System

An experiment was conducted at Moncrief Army Hospital, which was operating at 250 beds, at Fort Jackson, SC, to test the effectiveness of an Advanced Preparation Food Service System that employs a combination of cook- freeze, cook-chill, and cook-serve production methods along with rethermalization carts for patient tray delivery. The Advanced Preparation System is projected to be more cost effective and has equal or better food acceptance for both dining room patrons and patients than the original conventional system, which employs cook-serve production techniques. The test results support a recommendation that the Army implement an Advanced Preparation Food Service System in a medical center facility to verify cost effectiveness in larger-size hospitals. Originator supplied keywords include Advanced preparation Conventional preparation Cook-freeze Cook-chill Cook-serve Food acceptance Rethermalization cart Patient tray delivery.