Quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients’ perspectives in Lebanon
Abstract Hospital plate waste poses a major challenge facing the present food systems, as providing meals that meet the nutritional requirements and expectations of the patients remains complex for hospital food services. This study aimed to assess the magnitude of plate waste in Lebanese hospitals,...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2024-11-01
|
| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-80205-8 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850162702254604288 |
|---|---|
| author | Maha Hoteit Nour Badreddine Jana El Cheikh Mohamad Maroun Khattar Ferial Fattouh Dana Malli Esraa Antar Sami El Khatib Mohamad G. Abiad Hussein F. Hassan |
| author_facet | Maha Hoteit Nour Badreddine Jana El Cheikh Mohamad Maroun Khattar Ferial Fattouh Dana Malli Esraa Antar Sami El Khatib Mohamad G. Abiad Hussein F. Hassan |
| author_sort | Maha Hoteit |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Hospital plate waste poses a major challenge facing the present food systems, as providing meals that meet the nutritional requirements and expectations of the patients remains complex for hospital food services. This study aimed to assess the magnitude of plate waste in Lebanese hospitals, evaluate the patients’ satisfaction levels, and identify the determinants of plate waste in participating hospitals. A cross-sectional study was conducted between April 2023 and September 2023, involving 155 in-patients from cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, obstetrics-gynecology, and surgical wards across 16 hospitals in different Lebanese governorates. Plate waste was measured, and patient satisfaction was assessed using a questionnaire. Plate waste represented 31.4% of the total food served, equivalent to 366 tonnes annually in the 16 participating hospitals. Waste was higher in hospitals located in rural areas (p-value = 0.771). The highest waste levels were observed in the obstetrics-gynecology ward and during lunchtime. Vegetables were the most wasted food group. The majority of participants were satisfied with the food service, and low appetite was the main reason for not consuming hospital meals. Food quality (β= −0.17, p-value = 0.049) and governorate (β= −0.18, p-value = 0.019) were determinants of plate waste. The hospital sector is as unique and challenging as other sectors regarding plate waste, which warrants further research to gain deeper insights into waste generation. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-167e0f5ea1374ccd9f4d00034fa2ceee |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-167e0f5ea1374ccd9f4d00034fa2ceee2025-08-20T02:22:29ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-11-0114111110.1038/s41598-024-80205-8Quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients’ perspectives in LebanonMaha Hoteit0Nour Badreddine1Jana El Cheikh Mohamad2Maroun Khattar3Ferial Fattouh4Dana Malli5Esraa Antar6Sami El Khatib7Mohamad G. Abiad8Hussein F. Hassan9Department of Nutrition and Food Science, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American UniversityFaculty of Public Health, Lebanese UniversityDepartment of Nutrition and Food Science, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American UniversityFaculty of Public Health, Lebanese UniversityFaculty of Public Health, Lebanese UniversityFaculty of Public Health, Lebanese UniversityFaculty of Public Health, Lebanese UniversityDepartment of Food Sciences and Technology, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese International UniversityDepartment of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, American University of BeirutDepartment of Nutrition and Food Science, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American UniversityAbstract Hospital plate waste poses a major challenge facing the present food systems, as providing meals that meet the nutritional requirements and expectations of the patients remains complex for hospital food services. This study aimed to assess the magnitude of plate waste in Lebanese hospitals, evaluate the patients’ satisfaction levels, and identify the determinants of plate waste in participating hospitals. A cross-sectional study was conducted between April 2023 and September 2023, involving 155 in-patients from cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, obstetrics-gynecology, and surgical wards across 16 hospitals in different Lebanese governorates. Plate waste was measured, and patient satisfaction was assessed using a questionnaire. Plate waste represented 31.4% of the total food served, equivalent to 366 tonnes annually in the 16 participating hospitals. Waste was higher in hospitals located in rural areas (p-value = 0.771). The highest waste levels were observed in the obstetrics-gynecology ward and during lunchtime. Vegetables were the most wasted food group. The majority of participants were satisfied with the food service, and low appetite was the main reason for not consuming hospital meals. Food quality (β= −0.17, p-value = 0.049) and governorate (β= −0.18, p-value = 0.019) were determinants of plate waste. The hospital sector is as unique and challenging as other sectors regarding plate waste, which warrants further research to gain deeper insights into waste generation.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-80205-8Plate wasteHospitalPatientPerceptionAttitudeSatisfaction |
| spellingShingle | Maha Hoteit Nour Badreddine Jana El Cheikh Mohamad Maroun Khattar Ferial Fattouh Dana Malli Esraa Antar Sami El Khatib Mohamad G. Abiad Hussein F. Hassan Quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients’ perspectives in Lebanon Scientific Reports Plate waste Hospital Patient Perception Attitude Satisfaction |
| title | Quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients’ perspectives in Lebanon |
| title_full | Quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients’ perspectives in Lebanon |
| title_fullStr | Quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients’ perspectives in Lebanon |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients’ perspectives in Lebanon |
| title_short | Quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients’ perspectives in Lebanon |
| title_sort | quantifying hospital plate waste and identifying its correlates from patients perspectives in lebanon |
| topic | Plate waste Hospital Patient Perception Attitude Satisfaction |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-80205-8 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mahahoteit quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT nourbadreddine quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT janaelcheikhmohamad quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT marounkhattar quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT ferialfattouh quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT danamalli quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT esraaantar quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT samielkhatib quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT mohamadgabiad quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon AT husseinfhassan quantifyinghospitalplatewasteandidentifyingitscorrelatesfrompatientsperspectivesinlebanon |