Dining & Nutrition Services

Dining and Nutrition Services

At Silver Springs Care Center, dining is an important part of both good health and quality of life.

Our Dining and Dietary Services team works to provide residents with nutritious, enjoyable meals while accommodating individual dietary needs, preferences and clinical considerations. Menus offer variety and choice, with alternative selections available to give residents options throughout their stay.

Dining Centered on Resident Choice

Food is personal. Preferences can be shaped by culture, family traditions, health needs and simply what someone enjoys eating.

Our menus rotate regularly to provide variety, and residents have access to alternate selections when the featured meal isn’t what they prefer.

Resident feedback also plays an important role in our dining program. Through our Menu Committee, residents have an opportunity to share opinions about meals, suggest new menu items and provide input about their dining experience.

That feedback helps our team understand what residents enjoy and identify opportunities to continually improve the dining program.

Individualized Nutrition

Some residents require specialized nutrition as part of their medical care.

Our Dietary Services team works with nursing, medical providers and other members of the interdisciplinary care team to help ensure each resident’s nutritional needs are incorporated into their individualized plan of care.

A Registered Dietitian is available to provide nutritional assessment and counseling and to make recommendations based on each resident’s health, dietary requirements and individual goals.

Depending on a resident’s needs, nutritional planning may address:

• Therapeutic and physician-ordered diets
• Diabetes and blood sugar management
• Cardiac and other health-related dietary needs
• Weight management
• Increased nutritional or caloric needs
• Food allergies and intolerances
• Texture-modified diets
• Swallowing-related dietary recommendations
• Nutritional needs associated with wound healing
• Individual food preferences

Nutrition as Part of the Care Plan

Good nutrition can play an important role in recovery and ongoing health.

For residents receiving short-term rehabilitation or skilled nursing care, nutritional needs may change following an illness, surgery or hospitalization. Residents with wounds, diabetes, renal disease and other chronic medical conditions may also require additional nutritional consideration.

Our Registered Dietitian and Dietary Services team collaborate with nursing, rehabilitation and other members of the care team to address nutrition as part of the resident’s overall health and recovery plan.

When appropriate, dietary recommendations can be adjusted as a resident’s condition, abilities and nutritional needs change.

Supporting Different Abilities and Needs

Changes in health, cognition or physical ability can sometimes make eating and drinking more challenging.

Our interdisciplinary team works together to identify approaches that can support residents who may need additional assistance or adaptations at mealtimes.

For residents with swallowing difficulties, Speech Therapy and Dietary Services can collaborate on appropriate food textures and liquid consistencies based on clinical recommendations.

Residents living with dementia or cognitive changes may also benefit from individualized approaches designed around their abilities, routines and preferences.

Food, Culture and Community

Meals are about more than nutrition. Food can provide comfort, create memories and bring people together.

Whenever possible, our dining and recreation teams incorporate holidays, celebrations, cultural traditions and special events into life at Silver Springs.

We recognize that our residents come from different backgrounds and have different tastes. Understanding those preferences is another way we can make Silver Springs feel more like home.

Resident Voice Matters

We encourage residents to tell us what they think.

The Menu Committee gives residents a regular opportunity to provide feedback and suggest changes directly related to dining and food service.

Residents can also communicate preferences and concerns to members of our Dietary Services team throughout their stay.

Listening to that feedback helps us provide a dining experience that reflects the people who actually live at Silver Springs.

Dining and Nutrition at Silver Springs

Whether a resident is recovering with us for a short-term stay or making Silver Springs their long-term home, our goal is to provide meals that support their health while offering variety, choice and enjoyment.

Our Dining and Dietary Services team works alongside nursing, rehabilitation, social services and other departments to make nutrition an integrated part of each resident’s overall care and quality of life.

Learn More About Silver Springs Care Center

We welcome prospective residents and families to learn more about skilled nursing, rehabilitation and long-term care at Silver Springs and experience our community firsthand.

Silver Springs Care Center
33 Roy Street
Meriden, CT 06450

Main Number: (203) 237-8457