Multisolving Policy Library
Healthy Meals for Patients
(pdf)
Since 1997 | Penang, Malaysia | Buddhist Tzu-Chi Dialysis Center
Project Goals
- Reduce the Center’s environmental footprint
- Reduce and recycle waste
- Promote healthy diets
- Provide a livelihood for patients
FOOD & WATER
JOBS & ASSETS
HEALTH, WELLBEING, & SAFETY
CONNECTION
Health Case Study: Healthy Meals for Patients
By practicing a vegetarian diet and using recyclable food containers, Tzu-Chi Dialysis Center in Penang, Malaysia transforms the spirit of loving-kindness into actions to improve health, patient livelihoods, and the environment.
All meals prepared at or brought to the Center are vegetarian, and only recyclable food containers are allowed in the Center. Dialysis patients help implement the recycling project, enabling them to contribute to society and live independent lives.
As of 2016, they had a total of 126 patients and 87 staff, and vegetarian staff members had increased from 28 to 51 in one year.
One Year Snapshot of Program
Leadership & Replication
Staff, volunteers, and patients in Tzu-Chi establishments are the main implementers and beneficiaries of the program.
The policies of vegetarian meals and recycling are present in all Tzu-Chi medical establishments in 54 countries around the world.