Southampton Mealtime Assistance Study

The primary objective of the study is to determine if the use of volunteers employed specifically to focus on mealtime assistance can increase food and nutrient intake of patients admitted to an acute Care of the Elderly ward. The sustainability of providing helpers to increase dietary intake over a year will be assessed and linked to actual dietary intake. The secondary objectives are to assess the association between dietary intake resulting from mealtime assistance and patient satisfaction, malnutrition risk, body composition, grip strength, length of hospital stay and hospital mortality.