Innovations in Aged Care 

Cater Care is helping providers around Australia not only meet but exceed expectations for the government’s Quality Standards audits. Food is one of the most important things in life. Whether we are young or old, it’s a chance to feel nourished, relax, and socialise. The delivery of meals, how they taste, the environment in which they’re consumed, the people who provide them all contribute to the experience of life each day for consumers.

Innovations in support software

Cater Care has partnered with SoupedUp, Australia’s leading aged care catering and training software provider, to offer our clients an online software solution for planning, managing and delivering outstanding catering services for consumers.

Through the SoupedUp system, our clients benefit from enhanced communication and collaboration between the clinical and catering teams as real-time information can be updated and accessed across multiple devices. Staff can also log individual consumer’s likes, dislikes, allergies and diets and combine them with nutritional and allergen information, providing reassurance to consumers and their families that dietary requirements are being met.

This also allows our clients to benefit from reduced administration time with accreditation and audit compliance, as the SoupedUp system is compatible with the new IDDSI standards. If your facility is not already using software to streamline communication and collaboration for staff, it is worth looking into, as it can relieve workload pressure and mitigate a variety of risks.

Taste and texture

Finding ways to make texture modified meals appealing is especially challenging for providers. At Cater Care, our chefs have found that texture modified food can be pureed, yet still look, taste and feel good for consumers.

So, what’s the secret?

By moving away from the ‘ice cream scoop method’ and instead using moulds and piping techniques for pureed food so it can set and resemble its original form on the plate, we improve the meal’s appeal. While it’s possible to source pre-made texture modified meals, by choosing to produce the food fresh on site and then modify its texture prior to serving, the food still retains its original delicious taste and nutrients instead of tasting bland and lacking vitality. Having an onsite kitchen with all the smells and sounds that signal to consumers that a meal is being prepared can have a huge impact on appetite.

Why contact Cater Care?

By working with Cater Care, you can expect:

• Increased consumer satisfaction through more enjoyable food options and dining experiences
• Increased consistency in food and beverage quality and safety control and more reliable food service – one you can trust to meet Quality Standards every day
• Dietary planning and nutrition care, My Choices healthy eating program, Careful Choice safe and nutritious meals
• Clever technology to help our teams collaborate, to perfectly meet each individual consumer’s needs
• More fresh food for the same spend, thanks to our group buying power and supplier relationships
• Support and ongoing training for food service staff, empowering them to deliver their best every day
• Dedicated catering team working under our successful ‘Cater Care Way’ ethos of Care, Pride and Community
• Dining room experience program tailored to inspire your consumers at each and every mealtime through the food, the environment and how we interact with each consumer individually
• Our extensive and expanding recipe reference library and menu planning tools; each recipe has been tested, photographed and nutritionally analysed
• Transfer risk; our team’s already insured, trained, background checked, accredited and audited

Cater Care can make an incredible difference in how your facility handles food preparation and delivery. Talk to our expert catering staff today about a solution that perfectly fits your needs and helps you ensure you’re always meeting Quality Standards.