Abstract
The rapid increase in food borne illness outbreaks in Korea has been one of the major threats to the Nation's Health. Foodservice establishments have been identified as the major place for these outbreaks, mainly due to the lack of sanitary management and sanitary facility management practices. The purposes of the study were to develop hospital foodservice facility evaluation tools, based on the general HACCP-based standards and guidelines, for hospital food service establishments, to ensure the safety of these foodservices and to reduce the risk of food home illness. The scope of this study included: 1) an assessment of the current foodservice sanitation practices and managements for 6 general hospitals, with more than 400 beds, and 3 general hospitals, with less than 400 beds; 2) the development of foodservice establishments sanitation evaluation tools and sanitation standards, based on the HACCP system. The survey data showed varied results between the hospitals surveyed. Most of the hospital foodservice operations had many problems with ventilation and the plumbing. The total dimensional mean scores for the hospitals with more than 400 beds and less than 400 beds were 31.5 and 27.0, respectively. The highest dimension scores were for the water supply facility and lighting, with the lowest for insect and rodent control and toxic materials management. The levels of the mean scores were very low, especially for the general hospitals with less than 400 beds. These low mean scores may have arisen from critical problems within the hospital foodservice operations. The most needed facility management items for improvement were: storage shelf should be spaced 6 inches from the floor and walls, the use of three compartment sinks, utility sinks and cleaning facilities, with a floor drain for cleaning mops or liquid wastes, a ventilation hood designed to prevent dripping onto food, cooking facilities should be disassembled for washing and sanitizing, a separated hand washing sink and a sanitized food board for each area should be provided, all toxic material must have warning labels attached, and be stored in an area away from food preparation under padlock. The evaluation tool consisted of 14 dimensions, with 65 check-off items. The results of this study will provide basic facilities' guidelines to regulators, or foodservice industry personnel, wishing to build, or expend, and establish an efficient flow of food. As a result, food borne illnesses will be effectively prevented, and the Nation's health will be promoted for the development of their own sanitation standards, with a checklist for the safe production of foods.
