I was asked to write a little essay by the upper echelon of the company(ies) i work for describing my vision of the future as it pertains to healthcare in general, and specifically the dietary department at the hospital in which i work. The following was my response:

What do I see as my vision for the Rose Garden Caf in the future? Let me begin by stating what it is I see in the industry as a whole. The basic premise of healthcare is health, and the idea behind that is a person comes to a hospital to seek healing. Food and nutrition are a key element of that, much more so than people realize or credit it with. In fact, a large percentage of healthcare issues in America could be prevented by simple nutritional awareness and healthy eating practices. Unfortunately, most people arent well educated on this premise, from patients to healthcare workers to the doctors themselves. In a sense, the healthcare profession tends towards paying lip service to nutrition rather than truly devoting time and effort to its understanding. Among other things, this not only contributes to the certainty of further healthcare needs for the patient, but it also has earned hospital food a reputation as being unpalatable. It is my opinion that this perception of taste and nutritional value in food prepared and served in a healthcare setting can be changed through dedication and due diligence. Perception is difficult to change without consistent demonstrations that dispel the myths viewed as the standard. So, by my perception, my personal vision for this establishment has four parts: Food, Education, Innovation, and Operations.

Food: As I stated above, proper nutrition equates to proper healing and good health. My goal is to provide this by addressing the root causes of food related health issues. These include eliminating the use of trans-fats, excessive sugars, high fructose corn syrups, and their ilk. I further believe that we should be looking towards unrefined, whole foods as part of our vision for the future. Simple changes, such as replacing bleached rice and sugar with brown rice and raw sugar can affect significant change. A reduction in the amounts of salt and oils used in the preparation of foods is another focus of mine. What I would really like to explore is a review of the current patient menus, wherein we look for ways to implement these changes while still adhering to the concept that doing away with the things mentioned above doesnt eliminate flavor, and in fact enhances it. Which brings us to flavor why does something really need to taste bad just because it is good for you? It doesnt.. This is another goal of mine.to maximize the flavor of the food we prepare while still being mindful of its impact on the healing process.
When looking at the caf, my concept doesnt really change, although its application does to an extent. Many of our customers are employees of the hospital, and the only thing they sometimes have to look forward to, their only escape from the intensity of dealing with the patients and their family, the grief and loss, is to come to the caf and get something to eat which will comfort them. I want to provide that for them, and I feel finding a balance between health and comfort is optimal. With the caf, the necessity to provide healthy options rather than force people to change seems an optimal strategy. There are things that can be done to both provide comfort and healthy options together, I believe. Perhaps instead of simply offering Fried Chicken one day, we offer a nicely crusted, shake and bake style roast chicken instead, for example. I believe this concept comfortably segues into the next topic,

Education: This topic is applicable both from a nutritional standpoint and a procedural one as well. Regarding nutrition, I would like to see the Rose Garden Caf become a prominent source of not only great food, but also a place where you (abstract) can learn more about food and nutrition in general. I believe the first step in the educational process in simple discourse. Speaking to people about nutrition in a friendly and accessible way can heighten overall awareness without the fear of becoming preachy, as it were. Featuring healthy options with explanations as to why it is healthy is another way. The potential for classes is also something we should look at. Here at Salt Lake Regional, there is already a high percentage (relative to national averages) of vegetarians and vegans who work throughout the building. Based on my own conversations with the staff, I estimate that right at 30% of the employees embrace those particular diets. Of those, probably 70% are what would be considered Flexitarian, which basically means they consume meat infrequently. My point is that there is clearly an opportunity to invest time into further nutritional awareness, as many of the employees already have an interest in a healthier lifestyle. However, the education isnt limited to such. We also can teach the differences between grass fed cattle and non-grass fed cattle, for example, as it pertains to their impact on the consumers health.
Regarding the Caf and Cuisine On Call staff, I feel education takes on a broader meaning, and as such, my vision is a bit loftier as well. I feel all of the above needs to be taught, as we can utilize that knowledge to have a positive impact on a patients well being. However, there is so much more I would like to address both short and long term with the staff. Dietary restrictions are one such thing, but here is a list of some other aspects of Dietary that I feel must both be taught and maintained. They include cleanliness, health regulations, proactive attitudes and can do mentalities, cross training, and forward thinking (which ties in with being proactive). Basically, what I am referring to are expectations, both theirs and ours. I feel greater education provides greater opportunity for success, and it is a goal of mine to provide the best opportunity to succeed for all Dietary staffand of course, education is an ongoing process

Innovation: What is the greatest enemy of an active mind? Boredom. How does one cure boredom? Through innovation. I am not the type of person to be satisfied with status quo. My expectation is to be provided greater opportunities for self improvement and advancement. I feel that begins with me and try to instill that level of self expectation in my staff as well.
I also believe the same principle can be applied to a variety of things. Most notably, this would apply to innovation in the way we look at and treat patient care, which we can take an active hand in through nutrition. It is my goal to continually seek improvement in that arena. I feel providing seasonal menus, both in the caf and in patient care should be the direction we move towards, and it is definitely one of my strongest visions for the future of the Rose Garden Caf and SLRMCs COC program. The same old, same old just gets boring, regardless of how awesome it may be. I have also discussed the elimination of harmful and addictive substances in food. In this day and age, I consider that to be quite innovative, even as the concept gains traction in the public eye. We have a great opportunity to not only prove its viability, but demonstrate practical applications for healthy food.

Operations: To me, this topic covers the inner workings of the kitchen, from cleaning to administrative duties such as calculating food cost or tracking waste. My goal is to make this as efficient as possible, from tracking production and waste to addressing and properly assigning cleaning duties. This is my priority, and my vision of the future includes removing the mystery as far as whos, whats, whys, and wheres, so to speak. I would like responsibilities clearly defined and assigned. I would like to efficiently track production, waste, pricing, and nutritionals. I consider this to be a short term vision with long reaching impact.

So, all that having been said, my personal goal for this establishment in the future boils down to efficiency, awareness, and opportunity. I believe this department has the ability to stand prominent not only amongst Thomas Cuisine Management/IASIS accounts, but in the healthcare industry as a whole. I believe we can utilize these same principles to drive outside sales and attract a greater customer base from outside the hospital. I believe in doing so, we are all placed in a position to succeed and advance our personal goals.