Failure to Consistently Document Food Temperatures for All Meals
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure that food temperatures were consistently monitored and documented according to its own policy for all meals prepared and served in the kitchen. Observations revealed that the cook was taking food temperatures five to fifteen minutes before serving, and staff were expected to document these temperatures on a designated chart. However, interviews with the dietary manager and administrator confirmed that there were ongoing issues with staff not documenting food temperatures as required. The dietary manager noted that a new system had been implemented to improve compliance, but significant gaps in documentation persisted. Record review showed that in March, there were no food temperatures documented for 23 out of 31 days, with only partial documentation on several other days. In April, there were also days with missing or incomplete documentation. The facility's policy required food temperatures to be recorded at the beginning and end of the trayline for each meal, and corrective action to be taken if temperatures were not within acceptable ranges. Both the dietary manager and administrator acknowledged the failure to meet these documentation requirements.