Unsanitary Kitchen Utility Room and Dishwashing/Sanitizing Areas
Penalty
Summary
Surveyors identified a deficiency related to unsanitary conditions in the facility’s kitchen, specifically in the kitchen utility room and around the manual dishwashing and sanitizing stations. During observation with a dietary aide, there was dirty, standing water and debris under the manual washing station and sanitizing station. The dietary aide reported that the sanitizing station had been leaking for several weeks, that maintenance had checked and fixed it, but water continued to spill due to water pressure. The aide also stated the kitchen utility room was dirty and cluttered, and that they had not had the chance to clean and organize it, despite acknowledging that the utility room should always be kept clean. In a separate observation and interview with the dietary cook later the same day, surveyors again noted dirty, standing water and debris under the sanitizing station. The dietary cook stated there was no point in cleaning under the sanitizing station because water kept pooling, and although the sanitizing station had already been cleaned, they did not know the source of the standing water. The cook also stated that staff were supposed to remove all food waste from the sink strainer after washing dishes to keep the area clean. Review of the facility’s sanitation policy indicated that all equipment must be maintained and kept in working order, that the Maintenance Department assists Food & Nutrition Services with equipment and janitorial duties as needed, and that the Food & Nutrition Services Director is responsible for writing a cleaning schedule designating who performs cleaning tasks.
We Help Long-Term Care Teams Stay Survey-Ready
We process and analyze inspection reports and plan of correction using AI to extract insights and trends so providers can improve care quality and stay ahead of compliance risks.