Background: The older population is expected to grow, this age group is generally in great need of care. If malnutrition is discovered early, visits to the hospital and personal suffering can be avoided. The nurse was responsible of the planning, assessment and the execution of the nutritional work either alone or together in a multi professional team.

Aim: The purpose of the study is to describe nurses' experiences of identifying, assessing and treating malnutrition in elderly.

Method: The method used for the analysis aimed to contribute to care based on evidence founded on the analysis of qualitative research.

Results: The result demonstrated the importance of three themes, "The importance of working as a team", "The need for knowledge and education" together with "The importance of the organization" were crucial to avoid malnutrition. The nurses had limited knowledge of nutrition, making them dependent on other experts within the field, such as the medical doctors and dietitians. The physicians had an important role supporting the decision made by the nurse and together with the dietitian's expert knowledge of nutrition, this team effort was concluded to be instrumental for the successful care against malnutrition. To succeed with the nutritional care the results showed the importance of involving both patient and family, sharing information of the patient's general condition, the significance of diet and treatment options.

Conclusion: The nurse needs training in nutrition. With better knowledge, nurses become better at preventing nutritional work and care becomes more person-centered.