acceptable

Macaroni, ketchup and chicken is not an acceptable meal, says family of senior in long-term care

The family of a senior who lives in a long term care home in St. John's hope changes are ahead for his meals, after a photo of one of his unappetizing dinners ignited widespread criticism online.

On Sunday, Maria Fifield posted a photo on Facebook of the plain macaroni with ketchup on top, with seven pieces of cut-up chicken breast alongside, that was served to her 82-year-old grandfather for dinner.

"I would feel horrible feeding this to my dog," she said in the Facebook post, which has been shared and commented on more than a thousand times as of Tuesday morning.

Ryan Fifield, Maria's husband, says his wife's grandfather can't eat greens due to dietary restrictions, but that doesn't mean he shouldn't get any sort of fruit or vegetable.

"He's not being fed balanced meals and he's not getting proper nutrition," he told CBC's St. John's Morning Show.

"No vegetables, no fruit, no nothing."

Fifield said it costs around $2,700 a month for his grandfather-in-law to live at Saint Luke's Home in St. John's, and that expense should equate to adequate nutrition. 

They have a menu, and on paper the menu looks pretty good, but the problem is he doesn't always get what he's supposed to be getting.- Ryan Fifield

"Absolutely [it] should be better. If you're paying that kind of money to be looked after, you would think that a well-balanced diet would be part of it," he said.

"The staff there is great. Don't get me wrong, we're not complaining about the staff, they're really good. They treat him well. The only problem we have is the food."

Fifield's grandfather-in-law is in the early stages of dementia and has had two strokes, so isn't particularly verbal, Fifield said, and the family takes him out of the home to get him nutritious, home-cooked meals, at least some of the time.

'It's pretty upsetting'

When he does ask for fruit, Fifield said the family has to go and get it, and he might get a banana or, more often, a fruit cup.

"It's pretty upsetting," Fifield said.

An example plate of a balanced meal, according to the recently updated Canada's Food Guide. (Health Canada)

"They have a menu, and on paper the menu looks pretty good, but the problem is he doesn't always get what he's supposed to be getting."

The family has a meeting scheduled Tuesday afternoon with management at Saint Luke's Home, and Fifield said they're hoping some changes will result.

Working with families

Eastern Health said in a statement that it could not comment on any individual patient's case, citing privacy concerns.

But the statement did say the health authority is "committed to providing nutritious and balanced meals to residents of long-term care homes, while adhering to individual dietary restrictions."

The statement added that Saint Luke's Home has a kitchen that prepares meals on-site, in an effort to create "a comfortable, home-like environment for those who reside there."

"Kitchen staff work to ensure that all meals are prepared safely and consistently by using standard recipes and ingredients, and there is a clinical dietician on-staff who is responsible for resident nutrition."

Eastern Health added that it's important to work with families of residents on all matters of care, including meals.

Read more articles from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador

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Dog rescued from tracks: ‘Only acceptable reason for a NJ Transit delay’

NEWARK — There was a delay on NJ Transit's Morris & Essex Line after an engineer rescued a small dog.

Engineer Anthony Guzman noticed the dog ahead of train No. 6314, which left Summit at 7:15 a.m. headed for New York's Penn Station. He stopped the train, picked up the pooch and brought it back on board. He left the dog with crews at the Secaucus station.

The rescue caused a delay of about 15 minutes for what NJ Transit described as a "track obstruction."

NJ Transit spokeswoman Nancy Snyder said the dog has no collar or tags and crews are trying to find its owner.

Even NJ Transit commuters, who as a whole are often quick to criticize service on Twitter, had a soft spot for the delay.

"Great story, great crew," James Spinelli tweeted.

"OK. A dog story gets a like. But your overpriced service still stinks," @GirlReporterNJT tweeted.

"The only acceptable reason for a NJ Transit delay," @Aunt_Feather tweeted.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ

More from New Jersey 101.5

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About a third of Americans say blackface in a Halloween costume is acceptable at least sometimes

A slight majority of Americans (53%) think it is generally unacceptable for a white person to use makeup to darken their skin to appear to be a different race as part of a Halloween costume, including 37% who say this is never acceptable. About one-in-three (34%) say this is always or sometimes acceptable, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey.

The survey was conducted almost entirely before news broke about Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and other high-profile politicians who have been accused of wearing blackface as part of costumes when they were younger.

White adults are about twice as likely as black adults to say the use of blackface as part of a Halloween costume can be acceptable: 39% of whites hold this view vs. 19% of blacks. Hispanics fall in the middle, with 28% saying this is always or sometimes acceptable.

Among whites, those younger than 30 are far less accepting of the use of blackface. About a quarter of younger whites (27%) say it is at least sometimes acceptable for a white person to use makeup to darken their skin to appear to be a different race as part of a Halloween costume, but about two-thirds say this is rarely (23%) or never (41%) acceptable. Older whites are more divided, with roughly four-in-ten of those ages 30 and older saying this is acceptable at least sometimes, and about half or fewer in each group saying this is rarely or never acceptable.

Acceptance of blackface also is more common among whites without a college degree. While 44% of whites with some college or less education say this is always or sometimes acceptable, 28% of whites with at least a bachelor’s degree say the same.

Majorities of black Americans with or without a college degree say this is rarely or never acceptable. Black college graduates are less likely than those with some college or less education to say the use of blackface can be acceptable (9% vs. 21%).

There also are wide partisan gaps in views of whether it’s ever acceptable for whites to use makeup to darken their skin to appear to be a different race as part of a Halloween costume. About half of Republicans and those who lean toward the Republican Party (51%) say this is acceptable at least sometimes, with about a quarter (24%) saying it’s always acceptable; 37% of Republicans say this is rarely or never acceptable. By contrast, a majority of Democrats and Democratic leaners (67%) say blackface is not acceptable, with about half saying it’s never acceptable; 21% of Democrats say this is always or sometimes acceptable. Black and white Democrats hold similar views on this. There are not enough black Republicans in the sample to analyze separately.

The survey, part of a larger study to be released later this year about issues related to race, ethnicity and identity, also asked whether it’s ever acceptable for someone to wear traditional dress from a country or culture other than their own as part of a Halloween costume. About six-in-ten Americans (58%) say this is always or sometimes acceptable, while about a quarter (27%) say it’s rarely or never acceptable. Here, too, there are differences across racial and ethnic lines and between Democrats and Republicans.

Most whites (65%) say it is always or sometimes acceptable for someone to wear traditional dress from a country or culture other than their own as part of a Halloween costume; 41% of blacks and 46% of Hispanics say the same. And while 72% of Republicans say this is acceptable at least sometimes, a smaller share of Democrats (49%) say the same. White Democrats are more accepting of this than black Democrats: 54% of white Democrats say this is always or sometimes acceptable, compared with 39% of black Democrats.

The survey, conducted Jan. 22 to Feb. 5, 2019, includes an oversample of black and Hispanic respondents to provide more reliable estimates of those segments of the population. The overall data are weighted to provide a balanced representation of the U.S. population as a whole.

Note: See full topline results and methodology here.