North Arkansas Regional Medical Center (NARMC) is proud to announce that Paula Cantu, a registered and licensed dietitian, has joined the team as Director of Food and Nutrition Services.
Cantu brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the role. She served as Director of Food and Clinical Nutrition Services at Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital for more than 20 years, where she oversaw the service of more than 2,500 meals per day.
“We are pleased to have Paula join the NARMC team,” said Sammie Cribbs, chief operating officer and chief nursing officer. “Her leadership and knowledge will be very beneficial to the team, especially as we continue to remodel our food service area.”
As director of the Food and Nutrition Services Department, Cantu will supervise a team of 30 staff members. The primary focus of the team is to meet the nutritional needs of hospital patients. The team also runs the hospital cafeteria serving NARMC employees and guests every day. Additionally, a catering team provides in-house service for many hospital events.
“I’m excited to take on this role,” said Cantu. “Nutrition plays such a vital role in health and our body’s ability to heal. Working together, the Food and Nutrition Services team can help make healthy choices easy choices for those we serve.”
Cantu and her team are eager to provide nutritional assistance and resources to the community as well. The dieticians participate in a local diabetes support group where they lead a nutrition topic discussion each month. Physicians can also refer patients to the registered dietitians for outpatient nutritional guidance.