DIETETICS AND FOODSERVICE PERSONNEL ARE READY FOR TEAM PROBLEM-SOLVING

Objective To determine the readiness of dietetics and foodservice pers onnel for contributing to team problem solving. Design A descriptive, correlation study in which a five-part questionnaire was designed to c ollect data. Subjects Dietetics and foodservice personnel (n=632) in e ight hospital settings; 321 subjects (51%) volunteered to participate. Statistical analyses performed Statistical data to summarize demograp hic information and two-way analysis of variance with a Scheffe post h oc analysis was used to investigate differences between dietetics and foodservice personnel on each of the subscales. Results In general, al l respondents were somewhat oriented toward group problem solving and were confident in their problem-solving skills. Problem-solving expert ise within the organization decreased for the respondents as the probl em moved from their direct work areas to the organization level. Dieti tians displayed higher self-efficacy in contributing to problem-solvin g teams than did foodservice personnel, indicating a 75% chance that t hey would contribute whereas all other respondents indicated a 50% cha nce of contributing. Applications The results of this study generate o ptimism for involving all dietetics and foodservice personnel in team problem solving. However, training activities are needed for both food service personnel and dietetics professionals.