Meals in nursing homes - An ethical appraisal

The ethical approach of artificial administration of food and fluids has be en much enlivened in recent years. Nevertheless, the ethical implications o f the day-to-day event of serving meals in nursing homes remain to be clari fied. This paper has a double aim. First, I present a philosophical-ethical clarification of mealtime care in nursing homes. Second, I suggest several ethical orientations related to the nutritional problem among nursing home residents. I argue that caregivers must not only have considerable knowled ge and skill in nutritional matters; it is only by integrating as much as p ossible an attitude of caring with the competent performance of care activi ties that 'good mealtime care' can be achieved.