St. Joseph’s/Candler and Morrison Healthcare Food Services are “Catering to You”

Thanks to the catering associates working for a particularly attentive food service program at Candler Hospital, patients are feeling more like guests of a five-star hotel.

“Catering to You” is a restaurant-style, “high-touch interaction,” which means that patients get an increased amount of attention from their catering associate. From reading the menu aloud, to helping the patient select a meal that fits with their physician-recommended diet, the catering associate’s goal is to remain attuned to the patient’s appetite and nutritional needs.

Catering associates are trained to help the patient stick to the physician-recommended diet, but also to be sensitive to whether the customer seems to be excited about the presented meal choices, or whether they should continue to present options.

“The catering associates get to know their patients,” said Michael Johnson, Director of Food Services at Candler Hospital. “The people make this program.”

For the last 52 years, Morrison Healthcare Food Services and Candler Hospital have partnered to provide patients, employees and community members nutritional, but delicious meals.

There are 24 catering associates serving the 331-bed facility at Candler Hospital. Shortly after admission and prior to the first meal, each patient is greeted by his or her catering associate who introduces them to the full range of Catering to You services.

Over the course of each day, the associate will visit their patients nine to twelve times, taking meal orders and any special requests an hour prior to each meal. Acting just as a waiter or waitress would in a restaurant, the associate explains the menu, takes the order, delivers the meal and follows up to ensure service satisfaction. The associate is also available by cell phone for special patient requests.

Another unique feature of Catering to You is the decentralization of services to promote a more personal approach to each patient. The associate works closely with both nurses and registered dietitians.


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Morrison Healthcare Food Services. is the nation's second largest company in healthcare foodservice. The Atlanta-based Company specializes in providing food, nutrition and dining services to the acute care markets. Morrison serves some of the largest and most prominent integrated healthcare systems in the United States. With over 1200 Registered Dietitians, 200 executive Chefs, and 20,000 team members across the nation, Morrison is committed to the acute care healthcare market by placing the patient first and a partnering in providing healthy ways to enjoy great-tasting food.


St. Joseph’s/Candler of Savannah, Georgia (www.sjchs.org) is a national Magnet-designated facility for nursing excellence, with a focus on the latest technologies and research. Its comprehensive network includes centers of excellence for oncology, cardiovascular, neurosciences, women’s and children’s services, orthopedics and a variety of other disease specialties. Comprised of two of the oldest continuously operating hospitals in the United States, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Candler Hospital, this not for profit health system is the largest in Southeast Georgia and the region’s only faith based institution. It has been recognized as a JCAHO certified Stroke Center and is the only network accredited facility in the region.