IAFP 2009 Program Book and Abstract Book - AB97

P1-95 Handwashing Behavior in Foodservice: Development of a Research Instrument MARGARET BINKLEY, Pattarapong Burusnukul, Shelley Harp and Dan Henroid The Ohio State Unversity, Consumer Sciences, Columbus, OH, USA Introduction: Proper handwashing is identified as one of the most effective ways to prevent foodborne illnesses. However, research shows that compliance with acceptable handwashing practices by foodservice workers was low. Better understanding of workers’ handwashing behaviors can lead to development of effective training programs to improve compliance. Purpose: To adapt measurement scales of determinant constructs based on the Theory of Planned Behavior to foodservice workers’ handwashing behavior; to construct and pretest a questionnaire using the revised measurement scales that can be used in future studies examining handwashing behavior in foodservice establishments. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire used for healthcare workers was adapted to foodservice workers. A discussion group was held to identify additional items. The resulting questionnaire consisted of 5 sections. Section 1 measured semantic differentials measuring attitudes towards handwashing. Section two contained 54 Likert-scale statements measuring (a) subjective norm, (b) behavioral belief strength, (c) intention, (d) behavioral belief strength, (e) normative belief strength, (f ) control belief strength and (g) subjective knowledge. Section three contained eight items measuring handwashing outcome evaluation. Section four measured self-reported behavior. Section five was demographics. Questionnaires (n = 250) were distributed at four participating universities across the United States. Results: There were 144 usable questionnaires. Half of the sample had worked in foodservice for 1 to 5 years, with the majority having received some type of food safety training. There were strong single factor loadings of items for each factor, except attitude. Thus, one attitude item was removed. Cronbach Alphas ranged from .76 to .95, suggesting high internal consistency, except .61 for perceived behavioral control. To address the issue of reliability, an item was added to perceived behavioral control. The final questionnaire contained 88 items measuring seven determinant constructs to handwashing behavior as well as self-reported handwashing, and demographics. Significance: The questionnaire that was developed will be useful for future studies in measuring factors that influence handwashing behavior of foodservice employees. This will allow foodservice establishments to: better train employees on handwashing, understand how employees view handwashing, and improve handwashing compliance in foodservice establishments. This could potentially help to prevent cases of foodborne illnesses that resulted from improper handling of food, cross contamination, and poor personal hygiene. P1-96 Implementation and Efficacy of Self Audits, Community Engagement and Food Safety Employee Training in Minneapolis Food Service Establishments KENDRA K. KAUPPI, Fardowza Omar, Claudia Diez, Tim Jenkins, Curt Fernandez and Joellen M. Feirtag University of Minnesota, Food Science/Nutrition, St. Paul, MN, USA Introduction: The restaurant industry employs 13.1 million people, and 59% of reported foodborne illness outbreaks were associated with restaurants in 2005. Outbreaks are usually related directly to food-handler error. Many food service establishments do not understand the significance of a regulatory inspection and how they can utilize these inspections in reducing the risk of a foodborne outbreak. In addition, Certified Food Managers or the Person-in-Charge lack the materials to provide necessary food safety training for front line employees. Purpose: Implementation of a self-audit program, food safety employee training and community engagement to meet state and local regulatory food codes as well as establish systems of food safety and security measures to protect against contamination of food and potential foodborne outbreaks. Methods: A self-audit was developed based on the Minnesota Food Code and translated into nine languages. The City of Minneapolis conducts an estimated 3,000 risk-based food inspections per year. Establishments that had high numbers or repeated critical violations were approached to voluntarily participate in the self-audit program, and attend monthly community engagement sessions addressing topics such as personal hygiene, cleaning/sanitation, cross-contamination, time/temperature and food security management. In addition, Food Safety Employee Training based on the self-audit was conducted on-site, either in English, Spanish or Somali. Results: Inspection reports of 123 food establishments were compared before and after introduction to the self-audit program and food safety employee training. Of the restaurants participating in the self audit program and training sessions, a 40% decrease (P = 0.0002) in critical violations was observed. Participants also demonstrated statistically significant improvement in employee health and hygiene (P = 0.002), protection from cross contamination (P = 0.002), time and temperature logs (P = 0.001), use of chemicals (P = 0.013) and food security management (P = 0.0006). Significance: The evaluation and data collected appears to demonstrate that the implementation of a monthly self-audit program as well as food safety employee training led to uniform and comprehensive food protection, a reduction in critical violations and ultimately a reduction in the number of foodborne illness investigations. P1-97 Assessing the Training Resource Needs of Retail and Food Service Professionals Angela Fraser, BRIAN A. NUMMER, John Marcy, Richard H. Linton and Donald Schaffner Utah State University, Nutrition and Food Sciences, Logan, UT, USA Introduction: The US retail-foodservice industry includes over one million establishments. Food safety, a daily concern in these operations, is commonly addressed through training. An effective food safety training program is critical to keeping foods safe. Unfortunately, most food safety professionals are facing increasing challenges due to shrinking budgets, higher work loads, and limited time to prepare for and conduct training. Purpose: The purpose of this project was to identify the specific challenges food safety professionals face when training retail and foodservice workers and to identify those resources that professionals need to more effectively conduct food safety training. Abstract Book — 97 Poster

IAFP 2009 Program Book and Abstract Book

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