Failure to Employ Qualified Dietary Manager and Maintain Food Handler Certifications
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to employ a Certified Dietary Manager (CDM) with the appropriate credentials and did not have a full-time Registered Dietitian (RD) on staff. The Food Service Manager (FSM) confirmed during an interview that he was not a CDM, and both the Administrator and Director of Nursing stated that the RD only visited the facility once per week and was otherwise available remotely. The FSM was unable to provide a staffing policy for his position, and attempts to obtain this policy from the contracted food service company, Healthcare Services Group (HCSG), were unsuccessful as no documentation was provided to the surveyor. Additionally, the facility did not ensure that all Nutrition Services Staff possessed the required County/State food handler certifications. Of the ten employees in the department who had been employed for more than 30 days, only three food handler certificates were initially provided, with a total of five eventually located. The remaining certificates could not be produced, and the facility's HR department was unable to account for them. These deficiencies had the potential to affect all residents receiving meals in the facility, which had a census of 96 at the time of the survey.