Stealth health clicks at Richmond Hospital

The comfort food served at Retreat Doctors’ Hospital might have tasted good, but its nutritional profile didn’t quite reflect the healthful habits the hospital wanted to encourage among patients and staff. Menus tended toward breaded, fried and gravied dishes, salt was used with abandon and fresh produce only made an occasional appearance.

Once administrators at this Richmond, Va., community hospital turned foodservice management over to Sodexo and Michael Holliday came on board, all that changed.

“We explained that Sodexo had a healthier platform, one that would do better by the patients by giving them meals that are very tasty, but healthier,” says Holliday, general manager of nutrition services at the 226-bed facility.

The hospital gradually rolled out new menu choices following a six-month makeover of the recipes, kitchen and patient meal delivery system. The staff tapped Sodexo’s extensive recipe database for healthy ideas. Meanwhile, a char grill and flattop grill were installed in the kitchen, and portable refrigerators were brought in to increase efficiency when assembling patient trays.

Today, Holliday says, “we do a lot more items that are roasted, sautéed, pan-seared and char grilled. They still have great flavor, but we don’t have to add a lot of fat. We use a lot more fresh herbs and produce from local purveyors. We tried to eliminate a lot of salt, and we use olive oil instead of butter.”

Grilled scallops with risotto on the retail menu

Retreat Doctors’ now depends more heavily on scratch preparations—98 percent of the menu, Holliday estimates—and incorporates more produce and whole grains. “Eighty-eight percent of our vegetables are fresh, compared to 25 percent before,” he adds. Grilled, pan seared and sautéed seafood, chicken, turkey breast and leaner cuts of pork have replaced fried fish, pork chops and other fatty fare. Vegetarian dishes and a salad bar stocked with 60 percent fresh items were introduced in the public cafeteria; Holliday would like to increase that figure to 80 percent. 

The transformation started in the cafeteria, and Holliday admits the culinary team had to work to win over regulars and staff. “It was tough at first,” he recalls. “There was a little pushback because so many of the food items were prepared differently than they had been in the past, but as we offered samples and people tasted the food, they got on board.”

Patients need a little coaxing, too. Instead of leaving paper lists for patients to make selections, nutrition team members, called ambassadors, take tablet menus to patient rooms and go over the day’s menus with individual patients, helping them navigate choices and select meals that sound appealing. The ambassadors then assemble and deliver the trays, room service style.

Patient meal options change daily, but certain staples are always available, including veggie burgers, grilled chicken breast, stir-fries and build-your-own sandwiches. “If someone is on a regular diet, they can still get a cheeseburger if they want, but those are at the back of the menu,” Holliday notes.

Meals today average around 600 calories, down from 850 in the past, and sodium levels have dropped significantly, thanks to a shift away from canned to fresh and greater reliance on low-sodium bases.

Crispy chicken breast

Retreat Doctors’ sees a lot of repeat patients, he adds, and “some come in and want to know what happened to their favorites, like baked spaghetti and chicken pot pie.” He and Operations Manager Shelly Jackson make the rounds, ask patients for feedback and explain the rationale behind the shift to healthier preparations. 

The hospital’s new direction didn’t mean abandoning comfort food. A popular dish at lunch is a honey-apricot glazed turkey breast served with fresh mashed potatoes and roasted baby carrots. One of the dinner favorites is a farmer’s meatloaf, made with oatmeal instead of bread crumbs and served with a low-sodium broth rather than the traditional gravy. “These are familiar foods that most people can relate to,” Holliday says. 

One longstanding vestige of the old days remains: fried chicken Wednesdays. Staffer Calvin Fairley’s secret recipe has attracted an enthusiastic following over more than three decades. But at least now there are plenty of lighter alternatives to balance out the indulgence.

Holliday, who has cooked in corporate and healthcare kitchens for several decades, says his passion for healthier menus developed in part after his daughter was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The experience taught him how the right food had the power to help manage disease. But that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t rival the quality and taste of restaurant food.

“We are trying to change the perception of ‘hospital food,’” Holliday says of the strategy. “It’s still a work in progress.”