Abstract
Purpose: Food insecurity is a public health concern (Pereira, 2021), and 13.5 % of households in the United States experienced food insecurity during 2023 (Rabbitt et al, 2024). Older adults (age 65+) are disproportionately affected by food insecurity, which can cause serious consequences for their health and well-being (Alyward et al., 2020). Utilization of community-based resources can reduce food insecurity (Alyward et al., 2020). Value Stream Analysis (VSA), a tool traditionally applied in manufacturing and industry, has translated to healthcare settings and significantly improved operational performance (Aloga, 2025). VSA reveals waste, overlap, and hidden capacity when applied to a process (Rother & Shook, 2023). The purpose of this interprofessional team project was to utilize VSA to explore food scarcity among senior adults living in an income-adjusted senior living apartment facility in the Southeastern United States.
Methods: An interprofessional team comprised of a registered nurse, registered dietician, social workers, and engineers used survey methodology and Value Stream Analysis (VSA), to analyze food insecurity among senior adults residing at an income-adjusted apartment building. All team members were certified in VSA. Seniors (n=55) completed a 10-item survey to better understand the food scarcity landscape and food assistance currently utilized.
Results: Of the responses, 16% reported they do not receive any food assistance, 53% reported having Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, 11% received prepared meals from Meals on Wheels, 9% received home delivered meals from Focus 50+, and 27% received food boxes from the West Alabama Food Bank. Double Up Food Bucks provides up to $20 free fruits and vegetables at local farmer’s markets for SNAP eligible individuals. Only 4% of those eligible for Double Up Food Bucks (Hunger Solutions Institute, 2025) use this benefit.
Conclusion: Utilizing interprofessional collaboration and VSA has potential to identify hidden capacity, such as benefits senior adults are eligible for and do use, waste, including hot delivered meals that seniors do not show up to eat, and overlap of services when an individual cannot fully use all the services they receive. This project revealed sustainable, replicable, solutions to food scarcity among senior adults by revealing hidden capacity which can be harnessed to potentially improve food scarcity.
Notes
References:
Alogla, A. (2025). Revisiting lean healthcare: adopting value stream mapping from manufacturing. Frontiers in Health Services, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.3389/frhs.2025.1613756
Aylward, A. F., Engelberg Anderson, J., Morris, A., Bush, M., Schmitthenner, B., Shams, R.,B., Omofoye, F., Bodepudi, S., Roche, H.,Cimpian, J., Wardlow, L., & Platts, M. (2021). Using malnutrition and food insecurity screening to identify broader health related social needs amongst older adults receiving emergency department care in the Southeastern United States: A cross sectional study. Health & Social Care in the Community, 29(6), https://doi.org/10.1111/hsc.13367
Hunger Solutions Institute. https://hsi.auburn.edu/au-dufb/. (Accessed 8-25-25).
Pereira, M. H. Q., Pereira, M. L. A. S., Campos, G. C., & Molina, M. C. B. (2022). Food insecurity and nutritional status among older adults: a systematic review. Nutrition reviews, 80(4), 631–644. https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuab044
Rabbitt, M. P., Reed-Jones, M., Hales, L. J., & Burke, M. P. (2024). Household food security in the United States in 2023. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. https://doi.org/10.32747/2024.8583175.ers
Rother, M., & Shook, J. (2003). Learning to see: Value stream mapping to add value and eliminate muda. Lean Enterprise Institute.
Sigma Membership
Epsilon Omega
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Other
Keywords:
Interprofessional, Public and Community Health, Interprofessional Initiatives, Interprofessional Collaboration, Food Scarcity, Food Security
Recommended Citation
Brown, Janet, "Interprofessional Team Approach to Analyzing Food Scarcity Using Value Stream Analysis" (2026). International Nursing Research Congress (INRC). 165.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/inrc/2026/presentations_2026/165
Conference Name
37th International Nursing Research Congress
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Conference Year
2026
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-08-13
Interprofessional Team Approach to Analyzing Food Scarcity Using Value Stream Analysis
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Purpose: Food insecurity is a public health concern (Pereira, 2021), and 13.5 % of households in the United States experienced food insecurity during 2023 (Rabbitt et al, 2024). Older adults (age 65+) are disproportionately affected by food insecurity, which can cause serious consequences for their health and well-being (Alyward et al., 2020). Utilization of community-based resources can reduce food insecurity (Alyward et al., 2020). Value Stream Analysis (VSA), a tool traditionally applied in manufacturing and industry, has translated to healthcare settings and significantly improved operational performance (Aloga, 2025). VSA reveals waste, overlap, and hidden capacity when applied to a process (Rother & Shook, 2023). The purpose of this interprofessional team project was to utilize VSA to explore food scarcity among senior adults living in an income-adjusted senior living apartment facility in the Southeastern United States.
Methods: An interprofessional team comprised of a registered nurse, registered dietician, social workers, and engineers used survey methodology and Value Stream Analysis (VSA), to analyze food insecurity among senior adults residing at an income-adjusted apartment building. All team members were certified in VSA. Seniors (n=55) completed a 10-item survey to better understand the food scarcity landscape and food assistance currently utilized.
Results: Of the responses, 16% reported they do not receive any food assistance, 53% reported having Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, 11% received prepared meals from Meals on Wheels, 9% received home delivered meals from Focus 50+, and 27% received food boxes from the West Alabama Food Bank. Double Up Food Bucks provides up to $20 free fruits and vegetables at local farmer’s markets for SNAP eligible individuals. Only 4% of those eligible for Double Up Food Bucks (Hunger Solutions Institute, 2025) use this benefit.
Conclusion: Utilizing interprofessional collaboration and VSA has potential to identify hidden capacity, such as benefits senior adults are eligible for and do use, waste, including hot delivered meals that seniors do not show up to eat, and overlap of services when an individual cannot fully use all the services they receive. This project revealed sustainable, replicable, solutions to food scarcity among senior adults by revealing hidden capacity which can be harnessed to potentially improve food scarcity.
Description
This collaborative, interprofessional partnership utilized value stream analysis and survey methodology to explore food scarcity and food assistance programs utilized by senior adults residing at an income-adjusted housing facility. The survey revealed hidden capacity in the food assistance benefits that residents were eligible for, but not utilizing.