Keeping The Hospital Cafeteria Safe During The Pandemic

Hospital food operations are looking for new ways of feeding hungry employees (and visitors), according to an article on the Hospital and Healthcare website.

Having a properly developed, executed and periodically reviewed plan, sharing information and knowledge, backed up with on-the-job training with food-handling employees is essential. 

Maintaining high standards of food safety practices, combined with cleaning and sanitizing of equipment and surfaces are crucial. 

Also, employees that handle food have an obligation to protect food, surfaces and equipment from contamination and are required to inform their supervisor if they are unwell and displaying COVID-19 symptoms.

At Geisinger hospitals, a Pennsylvania healthcare system, has retooled its foodservice operations to meet the current needs of patients and updated health and safety systems, but some things stay the same, according to a Food Management article.

While many healthcare facilities have shifted to disposables during the pandemic, Geisinger still serves meals on china plates with metal flatware. 

Patient meals are still delivered to individual rooms, but COVID patients’ meals are delivered by nurses. 

One important change: employees can now order and pay through the hospitals’ payroll deduction system, then pick orders up from racks set up in the cafés

Read the full Hospital and Healthcare article.