Kitchen and equipment were found dirty and unsanitary, including a food processor, electric can opener, toaster, drawer, cutlery tray, reach-in freezer, hanging light fixtures, and HVAC vents/grills with visible debris and crusted buildup. The CNA, CDM, and MD all confirmed the items and surfaces were not clean and sanitary.
Food items in the kitchen were found stored without required labels, use-by dates, expiration dates, or stock dates. Surveyors observed unlabeled and undated items in the walk-in refrigerator, freezer, and dry storage, including scrambled egg mixture, watermelon halves, chicken breast, spinach, tater tots, chicken nuggets, fish strips, pork loins, rice, flour, ravioli, soup, and other items. The CDM confirmed several items lacked proper dating and acknowledged some dates were incorrect or missing.
Unclean kitchen equipment and improper food storage and labeling. Surveyors observed a freezer, ovens, fryer, can opener, cutting board, stock pot, and ice machine with grease, residue, and unknown substances. They also found expired turkey salad, unlabeled and undated eggs and a sandwich, and multiple bread and bun items with past prep/use-by dates, while the FSD confirmed several items were not clean and the nourishment room refrigerator contained an undated sandwich.
Improper Storage of Food in Patient & Family and Bistro Refrigerators: The facility failed to store resident food according to policy when the Patient & Family refrigerator and Bistro refrigerator contained multiple unlabeled, undated, expired, and uncovered items. Observations found an opened can of lemonade, expired nutritional supplements and yogurt, undated containers and sandwiches, and 5 undated roast beef and cheese sandwiches in the Bistro fridge. An LPN and the CDM stated these items should not have been in the refrigerators.
Kitchen Food Storage and Sanitation Deficiencies: Surveyors found an empty soap dispenser at the only hand-washing station, a microwave with dried food splatter, a deep fryer with dark brown oil and food particles, and buildup on the floor, oven doors, and drying rack. They also found unlabeled, undated, expired, and moldy food items in the walk-in refrigerator, dry storage, and nutritional refrigerator, and the DM and RD acknowledged several items should have been discarded or properly labeled.
Improper Refrigerated Food Storage: During a walk-in refrigerator observation with the CDM, an expired turkey breast was found available for resident use, and an opened bottle of lemon juice had no manufacturer use by date or open date. The CDM confirmed both items were available for resident use and that the turkey breast was past its use by date.
Unlabeled opened food was found in the kitchen refrigerator, including hashbrown patties, potato wedges, and French toast sticks, all available for meal preparation for residents. Facility policy required TCS ready-to-eat and leftover cooked foods to be labeled with the food name and discard date, and the FNSD, RRD, DON, and Administrator all stated opened food should be labeled and dated.
Dirty Nourishment Room Microwaves: Two microwaves used by staff to heat resident food were observed with visible food splatter, crusty residue, and crumbs inside. Cleaning logs did not include the Nourishment Rooms, and the CDM stated there was no set policy, only that dietary should check and clean the microwaves daily as needed.
Kitchen equipment and the walk-in freezer were found unsanitary during an observation with the CDM. Five dish scoops had dried food debris, along with a saute/fry pan and a deep pan with dried food particles, and both the CDM and ADM confirmed the items had not been cleaned and sanitized correctly. In the walk-in freezer, frozen biscuits, unused thermometers, and scattered peas were found on the floor under the storage rack, and the CDM confirmed the loose items had not been removed and the freezer had not been cleaned properly.
Unlabeled food, expired items, and unsanitary kitchen equipment were found during observation. The CDM confirmed open whole milk and buttermilk in the walk-in cooler were undated and available for use, and expired yogurt and whole milk bottles were present in a nourishment room refrigerator for resident use. In the kitchen, an oven, convection oven, fryer, and surrounding areas had food debris, splatter, and grease buildup, and the cleaning log did not show required cleaning for the ovens during the reviewed period.
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