Food Service Clerk

JOB SUMMARY

Proficient with food services/medical center systems and orients patients to the medical center room service program. Works with the food service department to ensure patients' meals are being ordered and nourishment is provided in a timely manner. Demonstrates a high level of professionalism and maintains a compassionate and pleasant manner to assure patient dignity, safety and satisfaction.

DUTIES AND ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Overall performance rating of below indicated essential job duties:

Processes new diets and reviews diet comments in medical center system. Utilizes two (2) patient identifiers when interacting with patients. Prepares menus for distribution and tally. Delivers, collects, corrects, and updates menus according to the physicians diet order. Writes patients name, room number and diet order across all menus.

Utilizes standard meal patterns to make menu additions and deletions as needed. Checks menus against medical center system before each meal, making changes as needed; orders food from production accordingly. Prepares menus for sequential tray assembly with accurate patient's name, room number, type of diet and food allergies. Monitors flow of patient menus and prepares them for summarizing.

Examines diet orders and menus received from nursing units and tallies portions and foods of regular and modified needs. Tallies quantities of specific foods, such as vegetables and meats, to be prepared in kitchen. Marks tally on production sheets to inform kitchen personnel of food requirements. Orders snacks for patients as needed. Documents meal census. Compiles monthly late tray report.

Receives and follows through on all communications from nursing regarding new admissions, diet order changes, transfers, discharges, and delayed meal service. Removes diet orders and changes form the computer and files appropriately. Retrieves previous diet orders from computer system for review. Demonstrates the ability to adapt communication and information provided based on the patients age for a variety of age groups, from pediatric to geriatric populations. Demonstrates an understanding of diet requirements and reviews appropriate menu selection with patients to meet therapeutic diet requirements.

Interviews patient for food preferences. Assists with patients' menu selections within established time frames. Provides assistance to patients who are not able to participate in room service and patients who have missed the meal period. Notifies dietitian when patient has questions relating to their special/restricted diet. Provides basic diet status information to patients regarding whether they are on a regular or special/ restricted diet.

Receives patients' meal and snack preferences via telephone or bedside entry and enters order into food service/medical center system for production. Accurately enters and retrieves information from the food service/medical center management systems. Collects patients' trays, obtains accurate data to record intake for calorie count and enters information into electronic/medical center patient nutrition record. Reviews each individual patient's likes, dislikes, allergies, and restrictions when taking order; and processes new diet orders and changes as required. Prints meal census report from food service/medical center system after each traditional mealtime.

Stays informed and handles new admission, transfer, ER-diet order change and/or discharges. Prints off unit census sheets for back-up measures. Delivers/pick up trays to patients, and loads soiled trays in cart located on nursing unit. Assists food service worker with cart collection.

EDUCATION/LICENSE/ CERTIFICATIONS/OTHER REQUIREMENTS

Minimum requirement:

Successful completion of Wonderlic Cognitive Ability Assessment.

Preferred qualifications:

One (1) year food service experience in healthcare environment.

WORKING ENVIRONMENT

Frequently exposed to wet and/or humid conditions and extreme heat.

Frequently exposed to toxic or caustic chemicals and extreme cold.

Frequently exposed to sharp knives, blades and other sharp implements.

Required to wear rubber soled shoes as precaution to prevent slips and falls.

Occasionally works near moving mechanical parts.

The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

Routinely uses a computer.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

Frequently required to move about throughout the department and facility.

Frequently required to use fine motor skills to handle and operate instruments/devices.

Frequently required to lift and/or move items up to 50 pounds.

Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, and depth perception.