Nutritional issues, especially Malnutrition has been an ongoing challenge for the Long-Term Care industry. During the 20th century, the United States witnessed an 11-fold increase in the elderly population, summing it up to 33 million (Crogan & Evans, 2001). Out of the 33 million, an estimated 5% of the people aged 65 years and above reside in nursing homes across the country. Nursing homes and other long-term care facilities house an assortment of elderly populations suffering from dementia, diabetes, dysphagia, and many others. In most of cases, people come to these facilities only after they have been extremely sick and need assistance with daily activities. As no two people are identical in either their behavior or medical requirements, it becomes extremely important for healthcare professionals to take care of their specific medical and nutritional needs. An intentional or unintentional nutritional negligence toward these patients can put them at a greater risk for infections, pressure sores, ulcers, and even higher mortality rates (Nelson et al., 1993). Malnutrition is a condition of nutrition where either a lack or an excess of nutrients such as energy, protein, vitamins, and minerals can cause adverse effects on the composition and functions of the body, or on clinical o
utcomes (Nutritional guidelines and menu checklist, 2014). To combat such nutritional issues, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has published a set of dietary guidelines for the nursing homes to follow. These guidelines provide specific dietary recommendations for elderly people to promote nutritional suitability (Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010, 2010). Unfortunately, even after these guidelines, nursing homes are unable to reduce malnutrition rates. According to Rowe & Kahn (1998), the amount of malnutrition in nursing homes range from 35% to 85% and is projected to increase if proper measures are not taken to reduce the rates. Facilities with compromised nutritional availability not only generates greater malnutrition cases but also deteriorates the quality of care and safety for its residents. When healthcare professionals lack in providing basic nutritional care to its residents, it negatively impacts patient outcomes, safety measures, patient and family satisfaction rates, quality of service, quality of life at nursing homes, and many more. This paper discusses some of the root causes of malnutrition in nursing homes and analyzes its effects on the quality of care and on the future of long-term care.