Just as we promote nutritious food, dietitians need to make sure that the nutritious food we serve is safe from food borne illness.  LTC residents are a high risk population for contracting food borne illness.  CDC determined that the five most common risks for food borne illness are:  

1. Purchasing food from unsafe sources
2. Failing to cook food adequately
3. Holding food at incorrect temperatures
4. Using contaminated equipment
5. Practicing poor personal hygiene

Have you noticed any of these risky practices happening during your routine kitchen inspections?   Some common observations that can put residents at risk are:  

• Temperature Logs not completed and you wonder if the temperatures were actually taken.
• Thawing Meat without a drip pan places other food at risk for cross contamination. 
• During storage, ready to eat food is stored near raw food.
• Plates of food on top of the steam table after tray line put food at risk for temperature abuse.
• Not cleaning and sanitizing preparation areas after changing a task. 

Well, it is a never ending challenge and there is no easy answer. However, a big part of prevention is the training of food service workers.  As Consultant Dietitians we need to be equipped with the knowledge on food safety practices so we can establish or strengthen food safety management systems in the facilities.  HMC provides the HMC Policies and Procedures which is a great tool.   Some of the policies and procedures designed to prevent food borne illness are: Policy No 210 -