Food-Service-Manual-for-Health-Care-Institutions

Food Service Manual for Health Care Institutions
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program and with individual state and local regulations. In addition, food service operators
designate the forms or format to be used to collect data and the individual responsible for communicating
with the media.
The following steps are suggested:
• Graciously accept the complaint.
• Obtain all pertinent data, such as name, address, date, time, meal, contents of meal,
when and where the food was purchased or served, if food was eaten when purchased or refrigerated,
when symptoms occurred, the names of any others who ate the same food, whether
medical attention was sought, and if so, the name of the physician.
• Take a food history from the complainant, if possible, of all meals and snacks eaten
before and after the suspected meal.
• Listen carefully to the complaint. Do not admit liability or offer medical advice. Do not
diagnose or suggest symptoms. Do not introduce symptoms. Record only what the person says.
Note the time the symptoms started. Remain polite and concerned (Exhibit 13.1).
• Try to preserve a sample of the suspected food for later microbiological testing. Label
and store (refrigerate or freeze). Remove suspected food from sales or service.
• Evaluate the complaint. Is it only one person, or are there multiple complainants? Does
it describe a legitimate illness? What is the attitude of the complainant?
• Contact the appropriate people: the owner, general manager, hospital administration,
infection control and risk management, and so forth.
• Contact the local health department (follow the regulations for the individual state).
Deal positively with all regulatory agencies. Allow inspectors to inspect the property. Provide
requested data. Be cooperative.
• Review the information and start an internal investigation to include the following (see
Exhibit 13.1):
All temperature charts
All employees on duty at time of incident; was anyone ill?
Check for complaints from the entire staff
Compare notes
What is new or different, such as new food items on menu, new supplier, new employee
Environmental sanitation
Date of pest control
Are new chemicals being used?
• If only one or two customers complain, offer refunds or gift certificates. If more complaints
are received, follow the established local health regulations.
• Arrange for medical services (in health care establishment with nursing, infection control,
and employee health facilities).
• Have food tested by an outside laboratory that microbiologically tests food.
• Deal with the media positively. Provide accurate data. Answer only the questions they
ask. Avoid jargon. Remain calm and professional. Tell the truth. Do not try to bluff or give out
misinformation.
• Continue to investigate.
• Take corrective action, as appropriate.
• Review outcome with all managers and staff. Change policies and procedures and make
corrections, as appropriate.
• As appropriate, file findings for future reference.
The CDC defines an outbreak as “an incident in which two or more persons experience a
similar illness after ingestion of a common food and epidemiological analysis implicates the food
as the source of the illness.” When laboratory evidence meeting established criteria confirms the
presence of a toxic agent, the CDC classifies the outbreak as being of known etiology.