Food items in the refrigerator and freezer were repeatedly found undated, including meats, cheeses, vegetables, and frozen desserts, and a kitchen staff member was observed serving food without a hair net. Sanitation practices were also deficient when staff used sanitizer buckets without verifying the solution strength, continued using a bucket that did not test at the expected level, and handled food with gloves after cleaning surfaces without hand hygiene.
Food service safety standards were not followed. Staff used the wrong sanitizer test strips for quat solution, did not know how to interpret the results, and were observed handling dirty dishes and clean dishes with the same gloves and placing dirty items on the clean side of the dishmachine. The dishmachine temperatures were repeatedly below required levels, logs were incomplete, and the kitchen and storage areas had soiled surfaces and improperly dated or undated food items.
Food safety standards were not followed when the walk-in cooler was found at 50 degrees F and several refrigerated foods were measured above 41 degrees F. The kitchen also had multiple opened and undated items in the refrigerator, freezer, and dry storage. During tray line service, an aide handled food with the same gloves after touching her face and leaving the station, and the DM stated food should not be touched with bare or gloved hands.
Food was not stored, prepared, distributed, and served in accordance with professional standards. A Bluetooth speaker was observed on a shelf used for meal prep items, and an LPN with a beard was observed preparing enchiladas for residents' lunch without a beard net.
Kitchen sanitation and dishmachine temperature deficiencies: A dietary aide used sanitizer that tested outside the expected range and later another staff member found it at 0 PPM, while soiled areas were observed on the shelf above the trayline, ceiling, and piping behind cooking equipment. Staff also handled raw meat and then touched cutting boards without hand hygiene, and the dishmachine washing cycle repeatedly measured below the stated minimum while clean dishes were being put away.
Dish machine wash temperatures were repeatedly observed below the manufacturer-required minimum of 120 degrees Fahrenheit, while trays, plates, bases, and domes were washed and then put away with clean dishes. The DM signed the temperature log as 120 degrees for wash and rinse despite surveyor observations showing lower wash temps, and the DM stated the machine sometimes did not work and that a contractor was working on the washing machines.
Food items were found undated in the refrigerator and freezer, including opened whipped topping, meatballs, dijon honey mustard, and frozen rolls. The DM was observed without a hairnet, and sanitizer buckets tested at 150 PPM when the DM stated they should be 200 PPM. The dishwasher and DM gave differing accounts of when the sanitizer solution was changed, and the dishwasher said he had not changed it that morning because dishes had piled up.
Food was not stored and handled according to professional standards. Surveyors found undated drinks, frozen vegetables, buns, and refrigerated items, an opened bag of corndogs left exposed to air, expired evaporated milk in dry storage, and expired sandwiches and a snack pack in a resident refrigerator. On a follow-up tour, the sanitizer bucket tested at 75 ppm when the DM stated 100 ppm was required, and additional refrigerated items were still undated.
Surveyors found that residents’ personal food was not stored according to posted standards when two containers in a designated personal food refrigerator—one with a cloudy brown soup-like liquid and meat-like substance, and another with vegetables—were observed without any resident name or date labels, despite a sign requiring all items to be labeled and discarded after three days. An LPN acknowledged the items should be thrown away due to missing labels, and the DON stated she was responsible for checking the fridge and that food was supposed to be discarded after three days.
Kitchen sanitation and dishmachine temperature deficiencies: Surveyors observed multiple soiled kitchen areas, including dust, food debris, dried substances, and dirty equipment, along with improperly stored food in a refrigerator, including an expired supplement, unlabeled items, and food without dates. The dishmachine was operating below the temperatures staff identified as required, and dishes were returned to use without being dipped in sanitizer solution after processing.
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