Failure to Store, Prepare, and Serve Food According to Professional Standards
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to store, prepare, and serve food in accordance with professional standards for food service safety for all residents. During a kitchen tour, surveyors observed a box of cereal and a box of thickened sweet tea stored on the floor, which is against the facility's policy requiring items to be stored at least six inches above the floor. Dented cans of food were found stored with ready-to-use cans, and several food items, including egg salad and pureed fruit, were not labeled or dated. In the walk-in refrigerator, cases of chocolate milk were found with expired dates, and multiple containers of unidentifiable food lacked labels and dates. Pepperoni was partially wrapped and undated, stored on top of raw beef that was also undated and not in a container. The kitchen's shelving, vent hoods, ceiling vents, and floor were observed to be dirty throughout. Interviews with staff revealed that the Account Manager agreed with the surveyors' observations and acknowledged the lack of labeling and dating, stating that they would discard all unlabeled containers. The Dietary Manager, who had recently started, described the kitchen as being in disarray upon arrival. The Administrator reported that the person previously running the kitchen was not a Certified Dietary Manager as believed and that the kitchen had been identified as problematic shortly after their own start at the facility.