Adequacy of energy and protein intake among hospitalized patients on therapeutic diet in government hospitals: A preliminary study
ISSN: 0034-6659
Article publication date: 7 January 2020
Issue publication date: 18 August 2020
Abstract
Purpose
The provision of meals has long been regarded as an essential part of treatment of hospitalized patients complementing medical procedures and nursing management. Today, despite changes in the health-care landscape, which focused on improving the quality and efficiency of hospital care, malnutrition among inpatient was still a common worldwide concern.
Design/methodology/approach
This was a multi-centre, randomized study conducted in 21 study sites comprising 21 state and specialist government hospitals under the Ministry of Health, Malaysia. The sample size for this study was calculated with purposive sampling method, followed by proportionate sampling to determine the random sample size of each of the study sites. The total sample size required for this study was 2,759 subjects. A validated data collection form was used in the study.
Findings
Only 32.2 % and 37.6 % of subjects achieved adequate energy and protein intake, respectively, during their admission to medical ward. The study result showed that the overall mean energy and protein intake was 794.6 ± 487.8 kcal and 35.2 ± 24.3 g, respectively. The estimated energy (p = 0.001) and protein (p = 0.001) intake of all study sites was significantly lower compared to the adequacy value.
Research limitations/implications
The adequacy intake in this study was only carried out in medical wards, thus reproducible result among other wards in different study sites could not be confirmed. Besides, this study assumed that the portion eaten by subjects during lunch and dinner was the same, and therefore, either one was recorded together with breakfast and either lunch or dinner to represent a subject’s daily intake.
Originality/value
This was the first nationwide study to report the adequacy of energy and protein intake of patients receiving therapeutic diets in the government hospital setting in Malaysia.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Funding: This study was supported by every state and specialist government hospitals, Ministry of Health, Malaysia (grant number: NMRR-14-724-21423). Authors would like to express their gratitude for this financial support. The principal investigator and researchers involved in the design of the study, collection and analysis of the study are employees of the Ministry of Health Malaysia. The opinions, results and conclusions reported in this paper are those of the authors and are independent from the funding source.
Competing interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Authorship: All authors contributed to the study design and its conception; data collectors listed in acknowledgement contributed to data collection; and Norshariza Jamhuri, Kong Jian Pei, contributed to data analysis and interpretation; Kong Jian Pei participated in drafting, writing, and editing the manuscript; Khalizah Jamli has reviewed and provided second opinion to the manuscript. All authors are involved in reviewing and approving the final version of the manuscript. All the authors affirm that the content has not been published.
Citation
Kong, J.P., Baharom, B., Jamhuri, N., Jamli, K., Mohd Yazid, S.F.Z., Ashiquin, N., Isnin, L., Leow, C.W. and Lim, S.M. (2020), "Adequacy of energy and protein intake among hospitalized patients on therapeutic diet in government hospitals: A preliminary study", Nutrition & Food Science, Vol. 50 No. 5, pp. 903-920. https://doi.org/10.1108/NFS-07-2019-0221
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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