Catering Associate (PRN)

PURPOSE STATEMENT

Responsible for patient food service on assigned units, e.g., menu selections, tray assembly, tray delivery and pick up, special requests and needs, in-between meal food delivery.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Exhibit a friendly, caring attitude to patients when introducing the Catering to You program, taking menu selections, delivering trays, inquiring during catering rounds and retrieving trays.
• Take patients menu selections prior to each meal.
• Comply with dietary restrictions on special, modified diets to ensure optimal food preferences are met within guidelines of diet order limitations.
• Offer alternatives to menu as allowed on prescribed diet in accordance with food allergies and sensitivities, cultural, ethnic and religious preferences, when patient inquires or needs additional selections.
• Assemble trays according to patient’s menu on tray tickets in a timely and accurate manner.
• May operate cash register/point of sale devise during serving periods as needed.
• Interact with nursing to ensure patients’ diet prescriptions are accurate, and patients’ food needs are met.
• Complete catering rounds after passing trays to inquire if patient needs anything else.
• Retrieve trays from patients’ rooms shortly after completing round.
• Maintain accurate and current information for each patient on assigned unit(s).
• Assist dietitian with monitoring of patients who are NPO, on liquid diets or have a calorie count ordered.
• Communicate any patient related problems/concerns to appropriate personnel, in a timely manner following departmental procedures.
• Adhere to facility confidentiality and patient’s rights policy as outlined in the facility’s HIPAA policies and procedures.
• Contribute to patient satisfaction goals by providing quality service.
• Comply with federal, state and local health and sanitation regulations and department sanitation procedures.
• Maintain a clean, sanitary working environment.
• Follow HACCP guidelines when assembling and distributing food supplies to ensure quality and safety of food supply.
• Complete all daily, weekly or monthly reports as outlined in the corporate policies and procedures on a timely basis meeting all prescribed deadlines.
• Identify and utilize cleaning chemicals following directions recommended by manufacturers and per MSDS sheets.
• Utilize equipment in performing job functions according to department’s safety procedures.
• Follow facility and departmental safety policies and procedures to include incident reporting.
• Follow facility and departmental infection control policies and procedures.
• Follow the facility’s protocols for Hazardous Materials and Waste Program.
• Adhere to Emergency Preparedness Program. Participates in disaster drills, as appropriate.
• Adhere to Life Safety Program and participates in fire drills as appropriate.
• Respond to utility failures following department guidelines.
• Participate and attends departmental meetings and staff development programs, as appropriate.
• Exhibit pleasant and cheerful demeanor and maintains a helpful attitude towards employees, physicians, patients, and visitors.
• Read and comply with all policies and procedures of Morrison and Compass as appropriate.
• Perform other tasks as may be assigned.
• Maintain regular and predictable attendance.

SHIFT REQUIREMENTS

• Variable shifts: cover as needed for call-ins, vacation, etc.

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE/SKILL REQUIREMENTS

• High school education; or up to one-month related experience or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals. Ability to write routine reports and correspondence. Ability to effectively present information in one-on-one and small group situations to patients, families and associates of the organization.
• Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals. Ability to compute ratio, and percent.
• Possess necessary skills to effectively operate hospital’s admission, discharge and transfer (ADT) system and other computer-based systems, which manage patient-care records.
• Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in written, or oral form.
• Ability to deal with problems involving several concrete variables in standardized situations.
• Must be self-motivated and have the ability to work within the established policies, procedures and practices prescribed by the hospital/clinic.

PHYSICAL/MENTAL REQUIREMENTS

• Must be able to sit and stand, intermittent 8 to 10 hours a day.
• Must be able to use standard office equipment, including the telephone and computer keyboard.
• Continuously works under pressure of near 100% accuracy while meeting inflexible deadlines.
• Continuously utilizes manual/bi-manual dexterity, near vision, speech, and hearing.
• Frequently stands, walks, sits and utilizes eye/hand coordination and color definition.
• Occasionally reaches above shoulder, regularly required to life and/or carry up to 40 lbs.
• Occasionally walks on uneven surfaces.
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to talk or hear. The employee is frequently required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; The employ is occasionally climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl and taste or smell.
• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 100 pounds.