Convenience food use in eight hospitals in Ontario.

A ten point Conventional Convenience Rating Scale (CCRS) was developed to classify and analyze differences in use of convenience food for menu items of selective regular and diabetic diets for seven days in eight active treatment hospitals. Statistical analysis showed that the CCRS score detected differences between six meal components, three meals and four areas of production within each diet type. The convenience hospital had generally highest CCRS scores for all meal components; dessert CCRS scores were primarily dependent on the presence or absence of a bakeshop on the premises. Breakfast had the highest mean meal CCRS scores and lunch the lowest. CCRS scores were lowest for menu items which were prepared in the chef's area and in the salad and sandwich area. There was a significant inverse relationship (r = 0.895) between mean hospital CCRS score and aggregate skill level of food production employees. No correlation was found between the mean hospital CCRS score and 1) meal-days per food production labour minute, 2) total food cost per meal-day and 3) food production labour cost per meal-day. Among other recommendations, this research suggests that further investigation be made to assess the adequacy of the standards of performance used in this study and commonly used as indicators of institutional foodservice efficiency.