Abstract

To facilitate the initiation of culinary medicine at RIT, a manual to guide the use of a mobile kitchen cart was developed and evaluated. This manual was developed to support faculty, staff, and students’ use of a Mobile Kitchen Cart to be able to support culinary medicine and nutrition education activities. The Manual was directed to RIT faculty, staff, and students who have experience with the cart or intend to have future use with the cart. A qualitative evaluation study was conducted with ten participants including RIT faculty (n=2), students (n=4), and staff (n=4). Feedback on the manual was obtained through semi-structured interviews that explored the manual’s clarity, usability, and organization. Analysis consisted of qualitative thematic analysis to identify themes and areas of improvement. Thematic analysis revealed six major themes: manual clarity and comprehensiveness, visual elements, organization and navigation, user confidence, safety emphasis and overall value, and areas of improvement. All participants described the manual as clear and well-structured, noting particular value in the instructional videos and safety protocols. However, participants noted navigation concerns and emphasized the need for hands-on experience in conjunction with written instruction. Based on participant feedback, twelve key revisions were implemented, including emoji removal to enhance credibility, consolidating videos into a dedicated section, adding navigation features, and incorporating missing technical specifications. The findings of this study inform revisions to improve usability and support the implementation of the manual at RIT.

Publication Date

4-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Student Type

Graduate

Degree Name

Dietetics and Nutrition (MS)

Department, Program, or Center

Wegmans School of Health and Nutrition

College

College of Health Sciences and Technology

Advisor

Barbara Lohse

Advisor/Committee Member

Elizabeth Ruder

Advisor/Committee Member

Mary Kiernan

Campus

RIT – Main Campus

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