Catering Associate

About the role

Under the direction of the Departmental Management, provides a personal level of service to patients by executing all phases of Dietary patient care for all assigned units. The services include (but are not limited to): assisting with menu selection, offering alternate selections appropriate to diets, assembling patient trays, delivering patient trays, completing hospitality rounds, collecting patient trays, assembling any nourishments or bed time snacks, stocking and maintaining assigned unit pantries, completing assigned side work, and assisting with washing of patient tray items and carts. Serves as a liaison between the Food & Nutrition Department and Patient Services Department for assigned units.

Responsibilities

• Thinks critically; utilizes sound judgment; promptly reports potential risks.
• Maintains state‑of‑the‑art knowledge of area of specialty, healthcare trends and practice, and populations served.
• Maintains a level of computer literacy appropriate to their role.
• Meets and maintains current all unit specific and organizational skills/competencies, certifications/licensures, as required.
• Completes hospital‑required reviews, e.g. HIPAA, safety, health screening, care concerns, and others as assigned.
• Adheres to National Patient Safety Goals.
• Demonstrates courteous and cooperative behavior when working with nursing and departmental staff; promotes positive working relationships.
• Generates diet lists before every meal to verify current diet, review allergy list, record diet changes, and track admissions, transfers, and discharges.
• Assembles trays according to patient selections and prescribed therapeutic or mechanical diet guidelines.
• Makes hospitality rounds on assigned unit to ensure patient satisfaction with meals.
• Follows up with problems that are discovered during hospitality rounds; takes immediate corrective action to solve problems.
• Completes all assignments in a timely manner.
• Washes hands according to established procedures.
• Explains menu selection procedures and other food services which are available; assists patient with menu selection as needed.
• Ensures quality and accuracy of patient trays.
• Follows up with diet changes and new orders; makes certain that items are delivered in a timely manner.
• Assembles patient nourishments or snacks per physician order.
• Utilizes scripting, set by management, when interacting with patients to promote the highest levels of patient satisfaction.
• Demonstrates commitment to the values of the department to ensure the quality of service provided.
• Demonstrates knowledge of own role in the event of a fire.
• Demonstrates high standards of personal hygiene; wears approved hair restraints in food preparation areas.
• Demonstrates proper glove usage.
• Handles dishes properly, being careful not to contaminate serving surfaces.
• Demonstrates proper portion control when portioning foods.
• Demonstrates cost effectiveness as evidenced through efficient use of materials.
• Demonstrates proper food handling techniques; follows HACCP guidelines.
• Attends scheduled in‑service programs.
• Has sufficient knowledge of modified diets and places proper foods and condiments on trays; has correct placement of items on