Personal Health & Hygiene Review Personal Hygiene 1. The human body is a harbor for bacterial growth; germs may grow and thrive on: the surfaces of skin, beneath nails, on the scalp and hair follicles, and especially on the face and near the mouth, nose, eyes and ears. 2. By bathing often, we can help prevent the build-up of bacterial growth, as most bacteria cannot survive the chemicals in soap or the heat and pressure of the water. 3. Employees should report to work bathed, with clean hair, and in clean clothes, even if a jacket or apron will be worn over the clothes. Handwashing 1. Hand washing is the most important step an employee can take against to prevent infecting or contaminating food. Germs or physical particles from the hands and forearms can easily contaminate food at work. 2. Hand washing is important for protecting the employee from the germs of raw and uncooked foods and for protecting cooked or ready-to-eat foods against the germs of the employee. 3. Employees should practice hand washing only at designated hand-washing sinks. Sinks used for washing dishes or for food preparation are NOT appropriate hand-washing sinks. 4. Many food establishments have a specified hand-washing sink within each area of food preparation and cooking. 5. Double-washing, meaning a second hand-washing on the way back to the kitchen after visiting the bathroom, is a strongly recommended. 6. Employees should wash their hands frequently throughout the work day. And, there are specific times when employees MUST wash their hands: Before putting on gloves for working with food During food preparation as necessary to maintain cleanliness and to prevent infection or contamination When transitioning from the preparation of one type of food to another to prevent crosscontamination When changing from working with raw foods to working with ready-to-eat foods After handling soiled utensils or equipment After touching bare skin, other than properly cleaned hands and forearms After using the restroom or lavatory After coughing, sneezing, or using a tissue, After using tobacco, eating, or drinking After handling money After handling animals, including service animals or aquatic animals
After any break or time away from the food prep area After any other activity that could contaminate the hands 7. Antiseptics are NOT a substitute for proper hand washing and a non-soap antiseptic should be used only after proper hand washing. 8. The temperature of the water in a handwashing sink must be at least 100ºF (38ºC) Proper Handwashing Steps 1. Rinse hands and the exposed portions of the arm (up to the elbow) under clean, running warm water. 2. Apply an appropriate amount of an approved cleaning compound (soap). 3. Rub the soap into a lather over the entire area to be cleansed for at least 20 seconds. The scrubbing motion is very important as the friction is needed to dislodge any bacterial growth. 4. Be sure to concentrate on bacteria-prone areas such as the fingertips, beneath nails, and in between fingers. A nail brush may be provided at the handwashing sink for more thorough cleansing beneath the nails. 5. Rinse lathered areas thoroughly under clean, running warm water. 6. Use an appropriate method for drying immediately after cleansing. Appropriate methods for hand drying include using disposable paper towels, a heated air dryer, or an air-knife drying system Glove Use 1. Gloves provide added protection against infection and contamination between the employee's hands and the food. 2. Gloved-contact with food is highly recommended above bare-hand contact with food, even when it is not required. 3. Gloves ARE NOT a substitute for proper hand washing. An employee should always wash their hands before putting on or changing gloves. 4. Gloves should be changed anytime they are excessively dirty, anytime they are nicked or torn, and anytime that the employee is changing from work with one type of food to another. 5. Single-use gloves should be changed if they have cuts or tears, or if they are dirty. 6. Single-use gloves should always be changed when moving from one task to another. 7. Hand washing is required before putting on a new pair of gloves, even when only changing from one pair to the next. 8. Cloth gloves or slash-resistant gloves should not be used in contact with food unless the food will be cooked after contact.
Fingernails 1. A food employee's fingernails should be short with smooth edges and unpolished. 2. Nail polish and artificial nails are allowed only if the employee wears intact gloves at all times while handling food. These items pose a potential physical contamination threat unless covered appropriately. Clothing & Attire 1. Wearing clean clothing helps prevent the infection and physical contamination of foods. 2. If you wear an apron, it should always be clean. Change your apron regularly if it becomes soiled. You should also change your apron when moving from raw food preparation to handling ready-toeat foods. 3. If possible, you should also wear long sleeves when handling or preparing food. This provides a barrier between your skin and any food items. Jewelry 1. Except for a plain ring (such as a wedding band without stones), jewelry on the arms or hands is prohibited by the Food Code. 2. Jewelry presents a physical hazard to the employee and it also the increases the potential for the physical contamination of food. For example, loose pieces on jewelry, chipped paint, or the jewelry itself can fall into the food. 3. Germs can be trapped within the impressions and crevices of jewelry. 4. Long chains, necklaces, and dangling earrings can all be physical hazards to the employee AND increase the possibility for the physical contamination of the food. Eating, Drinking, and Using Tobacco 1. Eating, drinking from an open container, chewing gum or tobacco, and smoking are strictly prohibited in areas of food preparation. These activities, even drinking and smoking, spray tiny amounts of saliva into the air, which could potentially infect foods. 2. There should be specific areas for employees to eat, drink and use tobacco. These areas should be far enough away from: areas of food preparation, clean equipment or utensils, food-contact surfaces, or any other areas which could be infected. 3. An employee near food, food equipment, utensils, or food surfaces may drink from a closed container. 4. A closed container is one with a straw and must be handled in a manner that does not contaminate the employee's hands, the food or other clean items, or the container itself.
Hair Restraints 1. Loose hair presents the most likely chance for physical contamination of food. All food employees should: wear clean clothing that covers all body hair, and restrain and/or cover hair on their head with an appropriate restraint such as a hat, hair cover, or hair net. 2. Beard restraints should also be worn when relevant. 3. Non-food employees, such as counter-workers, hosts and hostesses, wait staff, and employees who work with only beverages or wrapped or packaged foods, do not need to wear hair restraints unless they are can potentially contaminate food. Animals 1. Food employees are prohibited from any form of animal handling while on duty at the food establishment. Animal handling means physically interacting with any animal present on the premises, such as patrol dogs, service animals, or pets. 2. A food employee may handle and care for her own service animal while on duty, but must follow appropriate hand-washing procedures after handling. 3. Likewise, a food employee may handle or care for aquatic animals, such as fish or crustacean, which are present on the premises, such as in an aquarium, so long as the employee follows proper hand-washing procedures post-handling. 4. Important note: You must allow service animals into your establishment, but employees should not touch the animal Food Infection vs. Food Intoxication 1. Food infection occurs when the illness is caused by the growth of the pathogen in the body and causes the foodborne illness symptoms. 2. Food intoxication is caused by the pathogens releasing toxins into the body. The pathogens themselves are not causing the symptoms, it is the toxins they produce that make you sick. 3. Food infections sometimes take longer to produce symptoms. This is because it takes longer for the pathogens to grow and multiply in the body. Some common food infections include salmonella, shigella spp., hepatitis A and listeria. 4. Food intoxication will usually produce symptoms faster than food infections. Some can 5. occur as quickly as one hour after contamination.. Common food intoxications are Staphylococcus aureus, E.coli, and botulism.
Discharges from the Eyes, Nose, or Mouth 1. Any employee with discharge coming from the eyes, nose, or mouth, is prohibited from working in the vicinity of exposed food areas, clean equipment, clean utensils, or unwrapped single-serving utensils. All employees who are coughing, sneezing, or have runny noses, need to exit the work area immediately. 2. The manager is in charge of deciding if this employee should either be sent home from work, or only work as a non-food employee. Employee Illness 1. There are some symptoms that employees MUST report to their supervisor. Some of these symptoms are: Diarrhea Vomiting Sore throat with fever Jaundice 2. If an employee has ANY of these symptoms, he or she MUST report it to their supervisor IMMEDIATELY! The Big Five Illnesses 1. There are five major illnesses that employees are required to report to their manager or supervisor immediately. These illnesses will require restriction or exclusion from food preparation and/or handling duties. Norovirus symptoms include vomiting, nausea, fever, and aches. This illness is usually transmitted by an infected person handling food items. Hepatitis A is an illness that affects the liver. It is very dangerous if left untreated. Symptoms include headache, fever and jaundice (yellowing of the eyes and skin.) Salmonella typhi is a type of typhoid fever. It is highly contagious and you are required to report any diagnosis during the last 90 days to your employer. Shigella,spp. causes extreme stomach/intestinal illness and is usually caused by improper handwashing techniques. E.coli can be harmless, but some strains are quite dangerous. Causes include improper handwashing and improper food storage. Work Restrictions & Exclusions 2. Managers are responsible for prohibiting employees with certain symptoms, illnesses, or exposures to illness from working as food employees. 3. Depending on an employee's symptoms, the manager may either exclude or restrict the employee.
4. An excluded employee is not allowed to work at the food establishment until certain illness-specific conditions are met. 5. A restricted employee may be allowed a temporary non-food-handling position, so long as the employee's presence does not endanger other employees or consumers. 6. A food establishment which serves a highly susceptible population (HSP) requires more strict exclusion policies than an establishment which serves a non-highly susceptible population (non- HSP). Work Exclusions 1. If a food employee has been diagnosed with an illness caused by any of the Big 5 pathogens, he should immediately be EXCLUDED from working in any part of the food establishment. 2. The Big 5 pathogens are: salmonella, shiga toxin-producing E.coli, Norovirus, Shigella spp. and Hepatitis A. 3. Before reinstating the employee, you should speak with the employee s doctor or your local regulatory body for clearance. 4. If a food employee has one or more of the following symptoms, he should immediately be EXCLUDED from working in any part of the food establishment. Jaundice Vomiting Diarrhea 5. To reinstate an employee that has had diarrhea or vomiting, he must have had no symptoms for 24 hours or longer and must have been cleared for reinstatement by his doctor. 6. To reinstate an employee that has had jaundice, he must have been cleared for reinstatement by his doctor. Work Restrictions 1. If a food employee has a sore throat combined with a fever, the employee may be RESTRICTED or EXCLUDED from working with food depending on the type of food establishment. In a non-hsp establishment, the employee must be RESTRICTED from any food-related work. In an HSP establishment, the employee must be EXCLUDED from any food-related work. 2. The employee can be reinstated to full work duties when he has had no symptoms for at least 48 hours. Lesions & Wounds 1. For employees with a pus-filled skin lesion, or an open or infected wound, the lesion or wound must be properly covered for the employee to be permitted to work as a food employee. 2. For lesions or wounds on the hand or wrist, the affected region must be covered with an impermeable cover such as a finger cot or stall. Single-use gloves must be worn at all times as an added precaution.
3. For lesions or wounds on exposed portions of the arms, an impermeable bandage must cover the area at all times. 4. For lesions or wounds on non-exposed areas, the region must be covered by a dry, durable, and tight-fitting bandage. 5. If these standards are not met, the employee must be restricted from acting as a food employee. Employees are also required to report any lesions or open wounds to the person in charge prior to their exposure to food. Employee Re-Instatement 1. For an HSP employee restricted because of possible exposure to transmissible illnesses, the employee may be fully reinstated without restriction if: the employee was exposed to Norovirus and has been asymptomatic for at least 48 hours since last exposure or more than 48 hours have passed since the infected household member became asymptomatic the employee was exposed to Shigella spp., EHEC, or STEC and has been asymptomatic for at least 3 days since last exposure or more than 3 days have passed since the infected household member became asymptomatic the employee was exposed to Salmonella typhi and has been asymptomatic for 14 days since last exposure or more than 14 days have passed since the infected household member became asymptomatic