Mealtime interventions and their outcomes in care homes for older people considering the five aspects meal model: An integrative review

Abstract

Mealtimes are important events in care homes for physical and social well-being. However, residents usually have little input concerning meal timings, what food is offered, and how it is served. This integrative review explored mealtime interventions and their outcomes in care homes related to the Five Aspects Meal Model (FAMM). Research articles published 2010-2021 were searched for in ASSIA, CINAHL, PsycINFO, PubMed, and SveMed+ and resulted in 13 articles focusing on interventions. The analysis was based on the aspects of FAMM: room, meeting, product, management control system, and atmosphere. The result shows that even though interventions specifically focused on one aspect, they often evaluated outcomes related to several aspects. Different aspects can work together to foster effective mealtimes. FAMM eased to visualise the usefulness of mealtime interventions from a broad perspective and can be a useful tool for assessing and improving mealtime situations in clinical practice.

Keywords: Care homes; Five aspects meal model; Integrative review; Mealtime interventions; Older adults.