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.
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.
Unsafe Food Handling During Tray Line Service: During lunch tray line service, a cook and a DA were observed handling food and dishes with dirty gloved hands after touching papers, doors, a food cart, an aluminum foil box, and a refrigerator door. The cook also repositioned food on a plate with contaminated gloves and wiped a bowl rim with a washcloth used on the counter before sending it to the tray line.
Food was not stored, prepared, distributed, and served in accordance with professional standards. Surveyors observed undated and unlabeled items in the kitchen refrigerator and freezer, as well as opened and undated food and beverages in a resident fridge. A sanitizer bucket tested at no chemical level before being corrected, and a dietary aide with a beard was observed without a beard net. Staff also observed glove use during tray line work that did not follow proper hand hygiene and glove-changing expectations.
Unsafe food handling and undated spices were observed during tray line service. A cook was seen using a dirty gloved hand to touch plated food, move carts, handle meal tickets, and reposition food on plates, while the same soiled washcloth used to clean surfaces was also used to wipe plate edges and touch plated food. Multiple spice containers were also found without open dates, and the cook stated the spices were opened and used without dating them.
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