Prioritizing Clients
Demand for nutrition services often exceeds the resources available. One way that nutrition programs can work to address this is through prioritization — ensuring that those in the greatest need of limited services will receive them. Programs can use a variety of tools and resources to help them to identify and prioritize clients.
- Voice of Customer: Steps for Conducting Online Feedback Surveys— Step-by-step plan to effectively gather customer feedback using surveys (SCORE, 2019)
- Senior Nutrition Program Quick Guide to Prioritizing Participants — Considerations and next steps for prioritization (ACL)
- Senior Nutrition Program Meal Services Elements for Sustainability: Guide to Prioritizing Clients — Understand the importance of leveraging tools and relationships to meet the growing needs of clients (Nutrition and Aging Resource Center, 2020)
- HDM Assessor Training: Using Enhanced DETERMINE— Training on using the Enhanced DETERMINE (Greater Wisconsin Agency on Aging Resources, 2023)
- Enhanced DETERMINE Checklist — Tool assessing nutritional risk (Greater Wisconsin Agency on Aging Resources, 2023)
- Expanded Food Security Screener — Prioritization tool that builds on the USDA 6-item Household Food Security Module (University of Maryland)
- Informative Insights: State Unit on Aging Workgroup for Better Wait List Management — Outlines key findings, strategies, and considerations for managing wait lists for State Units on Aging, Area Agencies on Aging, and local service providers (Nutrition and Aging Resource Center, 2025)
- Senior Nutrition Program Wait List Worksheet — Tool to help assess, develop, implement, and manage senior nutrition program wait lists
- Sample Wait List Notification Letter — Sample notification letter for individuals placed on a waitlist due to limited resources, including guidance on waitlist status and next steps
- Sample Nutrition Services Registration Form — Sample registration form with proposed scoring to help nutrition programs identify and prioritize clients
- Service Utilization Review: Considerations for Area Agencies on Aging — Guidance for Area Agencies on Aging to review service utilization, ensure consumers receive the appropriate support, and identify service needs and gaps
- Wait List Notification Form — Notification of a planned wait list due to limited service capacity
- Priority Assessment Tool — Form used to determine client risk level and meal service priority based on individual needs
- Right Meal and Services for You: Registration Form — Assesses individual needs on nutrition and health and well-being to determine meal service priority and appropriate meal option (Greater Wisconsin Agency on Aging Resources, 2024)
- Meal Prioritization Scoring Sheet — Tool used to assess nutritional risk and individual needs, determine meal service priority, and guide appropriate home-delivered meal services
- Right Meal and Services for You: Red Level — Assessment to determine the most suitable meal services and nutrition resources
- Right Meal and Services for You: Yellow Level — Assessment to determine appropriate meal options and supportive resources that aligns with individual needs
- Right Meals for You: Green Level — Assessment to determine the most suitable meal option that aligns with individual needs