Emily Martin - Region 7

Hello Sodexo interns! My name is Emily Martin and I am an intern in region 7. I have completed my food service, clinical, and long-term care rotations. One unique experience I enjoyed was holding educational tabling events in my hospital cafeteria during my clinical rotation.  In this blog post, I will be giving 3 tips to having a successful tabling event.
 
1. Choose the topic to fit the audience 
My facility mostly serves doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals in our cafeteria. Because of this, we were able to provide more in-depth information as most already knew general nutrition information. If we had not been aware of our target audience, we may have provided information that was too difficult or too simplified. By choosing topics such as healthy snacking, the importance of variety in meals, and plant-based protein options, we were able to address specific needs within our hospital community.
 
2. Offer a free item or perk for participating 
Offering a free item or perk for participation is a great way to ensure involvement in the education session or activity presented. My facility accomplished this by offering free samples of vegetables and hummus, having a raffle for a fruit basket, and offering a chance to win gift cards to local businesses. This made participants excited to play and more receptive to information offered.
 
3. Keep it short and sweet 
Keep in mind that your audience is probably on-the-go! Offer short, educational facts or grab-and-go pamphlets to better serve your audience. Many healthcare professionals in my facility were only given a few minutes for lunch and did not have time for a conversation over one minute. Remain positive and take any time that they have available to offer information and answer any questions.
 
Overall, offer quick information that fits your audience well. Don’t overthink the planning process and be okay with stepping outside of your comfort zone. Some of the best nutrition education can happen within your own rotation sites during these last few weeks! 

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