Expired Nutritional Shakes Found in Storage and on Service Line
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to remove expired nutritional supplement shakes from their dry storage area, resulting in expired products being prepared for service to residents. During an observation of the dry storage area, surveyors found 48 mixed berry flavored nutritional shakes with an expiration date of 08/01/25 and 18 vanilla flavored shakes with an expiration date of 06/20/25 on the top shelf. A follow-up observation revealed that while the mixed berry shakes remained, only 15 vanilla shakes were left, indicating that some expired shakes had been removed from storage. Subsequently, three expired vanilla nutritional shakes were found on the service line, ready to be served to residents, and were only removed after surveyor intervention. Interviews with dietary staff revealed that the Assistant Dietary Manager believed she had checked the nutritional shakes earlier in the week but acknowledged missing some, and stated that expiration dates should have been checked when items were pulled for service. The Dietary Manager explained that expired food items were supposed to be checked and removed twice a week, typically when new stock arrived, and accepted responsibility for ensuring expired items were not present. The Administrator confirmed that there was no reason for expired nutritional shakes to remain in storage or reach the service line, regardless of the low usage rate among residents.