The issue of mushy food served in homes for the elderly

This bachelor's thesis deals with the issue of mushy foods served in retirement homes. The thesis itself is divided into two parts, theoretical and practical. The theoretical part focuses on social services, age and changes that influence using and intake of nutrients. The next chapters deal with nutrition of the elderly, crucial nutrients and nutrition disorders in old age. The term of mushy foods is defined in the last part of the theoretical part. The aim of the practical part of this thesis is to describe the issue of mushy foods in chosen facilities. I used the method of qualitative research, the technique of semi-structured interview, to obtain information for this issue. The semi-structured interviews were carried out with four employees of homes for the elderly. Another part of the thesis deals with the evaluation of weekly meal plans for six clients with mushy diet. The meal plans were evaluated by a programme ,,Nutriservis Profesional" and the final figures were compared with nutritive recommendations for population over 65 years old. The nutritive recommendations are listed in the publication called The Reference Values for Nutrient Intake 2011. Opinions on the issue of mushy foods served in retirement homes differ and it would be advisable to focus on better communication with families. According to my results, we can see that the issue of mushy foods is rather complex and it is necessary to solve it in a multidisciplinary way. The intervention of nutrition specialist is crucial within this type of diet. This thesis can be used as an educational source for students and specialists who take care of clients with a diet no. 1. Furthermore, the thesis can also raise awareness of mushy foods issue