Iowa Home Care: Meal Preparation For Your Care Recipient

Meal preparation is an important service for many care recipients. They may be unable to prepare healthy meals alone, and meal preparation services help them. 

It’s important to understand meal preparation services in the home care setting. In this blog, we’ll answer these questions: 

• Is meal preparation always included in home care? 
• Why is help with meal preparation so important? 
• What is involved for caregivers who provide meal services? 
• What resources are available for Iowa home care? 

If you reside in Iowa, you have free access to Trualta for even more information about home care, meal preparation, and caregiving. If you live in another state, you can check if you also have free access to Trualta.

Is Meal Preparation Included In Home Care Services? 

Meal preparation is often included in professional home care services. If you’re hiring professional home health care for a loved one, ask what services are available. 

There is a difference between home care and home health care: 

• Home Care. Home care services include daily living activities. This is sometimes also called personal care. A home care aide helps their care recipient with bathing, dressing, eating, and other essential daily tasks. This often includes help preparing healthy meals. 
• Home Health Care. A home health aide provides more skilled medical care. Depending on the aide and their qualifications, this might include changing dressings, managing medications, or even skilled nursing. A home health provider might also offer daily task assistance, including meal preparation. 

Why Is Meal Preparation Important? 

Assistance with meal preparation helps older adults remain at home longer. It’s one factor that delays the transition to assisted living. 

Several factors make it more difficult to prepare and eat healthy meals without help:

• Decreased mobility and other physical issues, like arthritis
• Low energy levels
• Inability to drive or use public transportation to get to the grocery store
• Changes in taste or smell that reduce appetite
• Cognitive impairment and memory issues
• Special dietary needs

Barriers to healthy eating result in poor physical outcomes for older adults. Help with meal preparation ensures seniors get regular, healthy meals that meet their specific needs. 

Meal Preparation Tips 

Meal preparation may include buying groceries, planning meals, preparing meals, and cleaning. These are some tips for family caregivers and professional caregivers providing assistance with meals.

Plan With Your Care Recipient

Get your care recipient or loved one involved in the planning. Planning meals and choosing what they want to eat helps get them interested in eating. 

Planning can also save money. If you’re working with a budget, a plan helps you optimize spending. If possible, take your care recipient to the store with you to get them out of the house.

Let Them Help In Safe Ways

Dignity is a hallmark of good caregiving. Part of maintaining dignity is encouraging your care recipient to do tasks they can still perform. Balancing dignity with safety is a challenge of caregiving. 

Preparing food can be difficult and dangerous for someone with physical or cognitive limitations. Identify what your care recipient can do safely. Supervise their tasks if necessary. For example, your care recipient may be able to make a simple meal. If they have memory issues, they’ll need you there to make sure they turn off the stove. 

Consider Senior Nutritional Needs

Older adults have different nutritional needs. Your care recipient may have very specific needs based on health conditions. Follow a care plan if they have personalized care needs. Otherwise, consider general senior needs:

• Provide a wide range of healthy foods to spark their interest. 
• Choose healthy foods, like fresh vegetables and fruits, healthy grains, and lean protein, to support overall health. 
• Focus on protein to limit muscle loss. 
• Choose lower-sodium foods to support healthy blood pressure. 
• Provide plenty of water and low-sugar drinks to promote hydration. 

Prioritize Food Safety

As the care provider, you can keep your care recipient safer by managing food hygiene and kitchen cleanliness. Here are some essential food safety components to remember: 

• Maintain cleanliness. Wash hands before handling food. Keep kitchen surfaces and utensils clean. Rinse produce, but don’t wash meats, fish, or eggs.
• Separate foods. To prevent cross-contamination, keep raw foods separate from cooked foods. Always clean surfaces or utensils used on raw meats. 
• Cook food correctly. Check the safe temperatures for cooking specific meats. Use a food thermometer. 
• Chill food. Put foods that need to be chilled in the refrigerator or freezer within two hours of buying or using them. 

Resources For Iowa Residents & Home Caregivers

Use these national and Iowa resources if you’re a family caregiver or professional home care aide:

• Home-Delivered Nutrition Program. Adults over 60 qualify for free home-delivered meals through this funding source. 
• Iowa Department of Health & Human Services. This state government department offers several food assistance resources. 
• Aging Resources of Central Iowa. This organization serves Central Iowa and provides several resources for home caregivers. 

Food and nutrition are important aspects of home care. If you’re a caregiver, Trualta has many other resources to help you provide the best care. If you reside in Iowa, you have free access to Trualta. If you live in another state, you can check if you also have free access to Trualta.

References

1. https://www.cms.gov/medicare-medicaid-coordination/fraud-prevention/medicaid-integrity-education/downloads/pcs-prevent-improperpayment-booklet.pdf
2. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7494579/
3. https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/healthy-eating-nutrition-and-diet/healthy-meal-planning-tips-older-adults
4. https://www.fda.gov/consumers/womens-health-topics/food-safety-home