Background
On 3 July 2026 the Ministry of Health convened a national workshop to develop standard guidance for patient nutrition in hospitals, chaired by Professor Chheang Ra, Minister of Health.
The workshop recommended establishing standard operating procedures (SOPs) for nutrition risk screening at hospital admission and integrating nutrition assessment into hospital information systems (HIS). The Ministry presented five priority measures including SOP adoption, creation of multidisciplinary nutrition teams, service modernization, continuous staff training, and use of data systems to track patient nutrition status.
Scope of Application
The guidance under discussion is targeted at patient nutrition services delivered in hospital inpatient settings in Cambodia and is intended to inform standard procedures for clinical nutrition assessment and meal provision across facilities engaged by the Ministry of Health.
Key Provisions or Decisions
- Adopt SOPs for immediate nutrition risk screening of all patients at hospital admission using internationally recognised screening tools.
- Establish multidisciplinary teams including physicians, nurses, dietitians, and food-service technicians to assess nutritional needs and plan therapeutic diets.
- Modernise hospital food services to improve food quality, safety, and nutritional adequacy according to patients’ clinical conditions.
- Implement continuous training programmes for clinicians and nursing staff on clinical nutrition and malnutrition management.
- Integrate nutrition assessment and monitoring into the hospital information system (HIS) to enable clinician access to patient nutrition data throughout care.
Implications for Investors, Businesses, or Compliance
Hospitals and contracted food-service providers will need to align operational procedures with any adopted SOPs, which may require investments in staff training, kitchen hygiene upgrades, dietetic capacity, and IT adjustments to capture nutrition data in HIS platforms. Compliance efforts will centre on routine nutrition screening on admission, documented meal planning for inpatients, and quality controls for food production and delivery within hospital settings.
Official Source
Ministry of Health press release and social media announcement (Ministry of Health Facebook), 3 July 2026: https://www.facebook.com/MinistryofHealthofCambodia/posts/pfbid032ir6RxTuhiPL8HFbQQbshvPM11FqvEr39hv5hNfouRFXFNYVDVLvAr1ovZPmNFV4l
