Healthy Employees Keep Food Safe

Last month we talked about norovirus, the leading cause of foodborne illness outbreaks. Today we will turn our attention to overall employee health, and its role in keeping food safe. Many of you who are in my generation can relate to the fact that you rarely called in to work sick, and when you did you probably couldn’t get out of bed. You may also relate to being a manager and discouraging people from calling in sick because it was so difficult to be short-handed. Well, that mind set just has to change for the health of everyone!

Employees who are ill can spread bacteria and viruses, possibly contributing to foodborne illness. While everyone who eats in your operation is susceptible to foodborne illness, individuals who are immunocompromised, preschool-age children, and the elderly (BTW that is over the age of 65!) are most vulnerable. To protect the health of everyone, it is important that certain symptoms and disease conditions are reported to supervisors AND that good hygiene practices are followed.

Reportable Symptoms

The Food Code states that supervisors need to know if a staff member has any of the following symptoms:

  1. Vomiting
  2. Diarrhea
  3. Jaundice
  4. Sore throat with fever
  5. Lesions containing pus—lesions on the hands, wrists, and lower arms must be covered by a bandage and by a disposable glove.

Some organizations may have specified additional symptoms that should be reported so be sure you know what requirements exist in your workplace.

Reportable Diagnoses

If you or a household member is diagnosed with any of the following conditions (known as the Big Six), you should report them to your supervisor:

  1. Norovirus
  2. Typhoid Fever (caused by Salmonella Typhi)
  3. Salmonella (non-typhoidal)
  4. Shiga toxin-producing coli
  5. Shigella
  6. Hepatitis A virus

Good Hygiene Practices

We all know that anyone working with food should follow the good hygiene practices that are described in the written standard operating procedures for the operation. These hygiene practices are designed to reduce the possibility for food to become contaminated. You may be a carrier of one of the Big Six bacteria or viruses and not even know because symptoms of the disease aren’t yet evident. For that reason, it is of particular importance that you follow good employee hygiene practices. Keeping these two fundamental practices front and center will go a long way in making sure you aren’t the reason someone else gets sick.

  1. Wash your hands often using the proper technique. Remember, many of the bacteria and viruses are transferred by the fecal-oral route. Even a small amount of fecal residue can contaminate food. Using a fingernail brush would help make sure that small particles are removed from under the nails.
  2. Wear gloves when handling any ready-to-eat foods. Gloves provide an added layer of protection, and minimize the opportunity for foods that do not get cooked to become contaminated. That is what is meant by “no bare hand contact.”

Remember, you have a very important role in making sure that the food prepared and served to customers at your workplace is safe to eat. Be sure to follow these guidelines. Risk nothing!

Evaluating Food Safety

One of the suggestions I made in the last blog was to assess the food safety culture in your organization by observing the food handling techniques of workers. Let’s explore that some more. You can do an overall assessment or you can hone in on specific areas of the operation, such as production or cleaning practices. Remember, when the environmental health inspector visits your operation, he/she just gets a snapshot of what is going on in your operation on that particular day at that specific time. You are there nearly every day, so you have a much better understanding on what really happens in your operation.

September is Food Safety Education Month: The Culture of Food Safety

Developing a culture of food safety is important for any foodservice operation. You may be wondering--just what is a culture of food safety? Let’s start talking about it by first defining what is meant by culture. When you look culture up in the dictionary, you will see terms such as shared knowledge, beliefs, values, attitudes, and meanings; a way of life; patterns of behavior; learned behavior of a group of people; and transmitted from generation to generation. I think these descriptors provide good insight into the meaning of a culture of food safety. You can also think about where you grew up, and a vision of culture comes. For example, I grew up in rural Oklahoma, graduating in the 1970’s with a class of 24 students. My culture instilled in me an appreciation for rural life, hard work, and independence. As I grow older, I realize I haven’t changed very much from my early years, even though I have completed a PhD, lived a lot of places, and traveled throughout the world!

Produce Safety: Special Considerations

In our last blog, I talked about general produce safety. Today, I want to talk about some special products—melons, tomatoes, leafy greens, and sprouts. These are all foods that have a history of bacterial contamination leading to foodborne illness. I also want to discuss salad bars because they have some special risks.