Examining the Benefits of Digitally Selectable Meals Called “À La Carte Digital-Select” in Cancer Chemotherapy Patients

Abstract

We explored the benefits of a digitized bedside terminal with a touchscreen for selectable hospital meals called “à la carte digital-select” in cancer chemotherapy patients. The subjects used “à la carte digital-select” for 35 days, from November to December 2015. On average, 253 (between 196 and 288) patients accessed this system per day, and 40 patients used it daily (15.9%). Subjects included 75 patients (cancer chemotherapy: chem-digital-select patients, female: 47) and 12 patients (concurrent chemo radiotherapy: CRT-digital-select patients, female: 6) with a repeat rate of 87% (65) and 100% (12). The average length of hospital stay in chem-digital-select patients was 6 days (1-35), the average number of days using “à la carte digital-select” was 3 days (1-24); a correlation was observed between these factors (r =.80; P