Objective: Where swallowing difficulties are chronic or progressive, or a patient is palliative,
tube feeding is often not deemed appropriate. Instead, patients continue to eat and drink
despite the risks of pneumonia and death. There is currently little evidence to guide clinical
practice in this field often termed “risk feeding.” This qualitative study investigated staff,
patient, and family member perceptions of risk feeding practices in one New Zealand
hospital. Method: Twenty-nine staff members and six patients and/or their family were …