Food Protection Trends - September/October 2021 - 487

management steps in a food safety laboratory were discussed.
Then, the key steps to generate technically valid results were
discussed. These key steps included statistical methods to
create sampling plans, guidelines for the validation of microbial
detection methods, as well as guidelines for the calibration
and validation of laboratory equipment (4, 17, 18). On
the fourth day, statistical process control tools that can be
used in a food safety laboratory were explained to achieve
process stability and variance reduction (11). Moreover, the
importance of record keeping and education was emphasized
to maintain or improve good laboratory practices (GLP).
On the fifth day, food laws and regulations, such as Codex
Alimentarius, hazard analysis and critical control point, ISO
standards, British Retail Consortium, International Featured
Standard were addressed.
To facilitate the lectures, different breakout sessions were
designed. For example, in one of the breakout sessions,
the participants were asked to prepare standard operating
procedures (SOP) for a selected food item to include (i)
transport (how the sample was packaged and sent to the lab
for analyses); (ii) preparation or processing of the sample
(time frame for sampling, homogenization of food sample
[stomaching, blending, rinsing, and swabbing], sample size
and measurement [volume versus weight], and choice of
buffer); (iii) dilution scheme and reagents; (iv) choice of
media and/or technique (standard plate counts, molecular,
immunological) for determining which microorganisms are
present in the sample; (v) atmosphere and temperature for
incubation of media; and (vi) presence or absence and/or
enumeration or quantitation of organisms (manual versus
automatic). Participants were also asked to design a continuous
training plan for the laboratory by answering the following
questions: Which training tools can be used? Who will be
included in the training program? What kind of competency
assessment can be used? How often will the training program
be implemented? The details of the curriculum and breakout
session activities can be found in Table 1.
Participants' demographics, evaluation of knowledge,
behavior, attitude, and handwashing skills
Participants completed a demographic questionnaire
after signing the consent form and agreeing to participate in
the Food Safety Laboratory Workshop. This questionnaire
included 14 questions to assess the participants' age, sex,
marital status, educational background, proficiency in testing
methods and laboratory instruments, and their English
proficiencies. Prior to and immediately after the curriculum
was delivered, the participants were evaluated for knowledge,
behavior, attitudes, and handwashing skills, as a means of
gauging the impact of the training on the participants. To
evaluate the change in the participants' knowledge, we conducted
pre- and posttests. The pre- and posttests included the
same 30 true or false and multiple choice questions. Moreover,
participants completed the same behavior and attitude
surveys before and after the delivery of the curriculum. The
behavior survey had 24, 6-point Likert scale questions, and
the attitude survey included 18, 6-point Likert scale questions.
Moreover, participants' handwashing techniques were
monitored to assess their representative skills before and after
the completion of the workshop. The handwashing activity
videos were recorded by using a Canon Powershot (Tokyo,
Japan) and saved to an external memory card (Samsung
Flash, Seoul, South Korea). Then, the handwashing techniques
were scored, on the basis of the timing, movements,
and sounds produced during the handwashing procedure.
The scoring system (Table 2) was developed by using the
method of the Consensus Measurement in Hand Hygiene
project, with some modifications (12, 16).
Data analysis
The total number of responses to each question in the
demographic questionnaire, behavior, and attitude surveys
was counted and reported as percentages. The pre- and
posttests were evaluated on a 100-point scale. Moreover, the
handwashing skill data were calculated over 12 maximum
points. Microsoft Office Excel 2013 (Microsoft Corp.,
Redmond, WA) was used to calculate data points and
basic descriptive statistics (e.g., mean, standard deviation,
standard error of the mean, percentage of responses, and
observations). Statistically significant differences in pre- and
posttest results and handwashing skill scores were calculated
by using paired t test (α = 0.05; Minitab, State College, PA).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The topics and agenda for the Food Safety Laboratory
Workshop were developed and based on the needs assessment
conducted by Pokharel et al. (14). The workshop was delivered
in Uganda, Mozambique, and Ethiopia in January and
February 2019. The Food Safety Laboratory Workshop agenda
is provided in Table 1. The aim of the workshop was to improve
the knowledge, behavior, attitude, and handwashing skills of
participants who work in food testing laboratories.
Demographic characteristics of participants
Table 3 demonstrates the demographic characteristics of
participants from the food safety testing laboratories in East
and South Africa. In Uganda, 60% of participants were between
30 to 39 years old. In Mozambique and Ethiopia, the
ages of participants ranged from 21 to 59 years. In all three
countries, most of the participants had bachelor's (4-year college)
degrees. In Uganda, most of the participants had biology
or agriculture backgrounds. In Mozambique and Ethiopia,
the participants' educational backgrounds were more diverse.
Similarly, most of the participants in the needs assessment
study conducted by Pokharel et al. (14) also had biological and
agricultural backgrounds, with an average age of 39 years. In
Uganda and Mozambique, most participants (80%) indicated
they were " proficient " with lab instruments. However, 37% of
September/October Food Protection Trends 487
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