Minnesota Department of Health (MDH)
Food Safety Partnership (FSP) and
Partnership and Workforce Development Unit (PWDU)
QUARTERLY UPDATE
Volume 6, Issue 2, April 2012
SECTION HEADINGS
A NEW NAME FOR EHS!
A New Name for EHS …….………………………..………. 1
Training Resources ….……….…..….….…………….….. 2
Bug of the Quarter ……………………………………….... 3
New! Program Evaluation Update …………..…….. 5
Food and Food Safety Matters…………..….……….. 5
Web Resources …………..……….……………………..….. 6
Climate Change Corner …….…………….……….......… 6
Plan Review Too ………………………………………......... 7
Laws, Licensing and Legislation ………………......... 8
Special Report: Licensing System Update .……… 9
New! Tip of the Quarter …................................. 10
PWDU Staff Contact Information....................... 10
A Message from Colleen Paulus, FPLS Manager
NOTE from PWDU:
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
We are happy to announce that Kim Carlton (formerly
of the City of St. Paul) has joined the PWDU staff. Kim
is working with Angie Cyr and Michelle Messer on
program evaluation and other projects. She is
replacing Mike Nordos who is the new Sanitarian
Supervisor in the Rochester district office.
There are two new features in the newsletter this
month: (1) Program Evaluation Update; and (2) Tip of
the Quarter. The Tip will focus on trends observed
during program evaluations, or on questions regarding
application of the Minnesota Food Code.
The Environmental Health Services section has
changed its name. We are now called Food, Pools and
Lodging Services (FPLS).
It all began with the creation of the Division of Hotel
Inspection in 1903. The name of the Division changed
to keep pace with the changing work. It became the
section of Environmental Health Field Services in 1975
and then merged with Community and Environmental
Services section in 1993.
That work of the section at that time included some
environmental health responsibilities that are
different from those addressed by FPLS today. Those
areas of work and the personnel responsible for them
tasks became separate sections in the Division of
Environmental Health.
The new name – Food, Pools and Lodging Services –
clearly identifies the work of the section. The name
change also reduces confusion regarding work
performed by other programs in the Environmental
Health Division.
You will slowly begin to see the new section name on
emails, websites, fact sheets and other materials that
you receive from us.
Eat
Swim
Sleep
Best to all,
Deborah …
and the rest of the PWDU staff
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
Page 1 of 10
TRAINING RESOURCES
2012 Training Calendar
Minnesota Department of Health
2nd Annual Healthy Swimming Workshop
Register online at
www.health.state.mn.us/registration/nocharge
Date
Org.
Topic / Contact
Apr 20
MDH
Healthy Swimming Workshop
(See article, next column )
Swimmers share the water—and the germs in it—with
every person who enters the pool. Join us at this FREE
workshop to learn how to keep swimmers healthy!
Apr 23
FSP-SC
FSP Steering Committee
[email protected]
The workshop will feature:
Apr 25
MDH
Program Evaluation Workshop
[email protected]
May
10-11
MEHA
Spring Conference, Deerwood
www.mehaonline.org/events
Jun 6
FSP
Topics: Epidemiology report, Food
donation and composting. Other
topics to be announced (TBA)
[email protected]
Sep
27-28
Oct 3
FSP+
Reduced Oxygen Packaging (ROP)
Workshop. Details TBA
FSP
Topics: Epidemiology report, Fruit
juice and cider making. Other topics
TBA
Oct 4
MEHA
/NEHA
Fall Education Conference, Walker
www.mehaonline.org/events
Dec
FSP+
Topic TBA
For FSP information and evaluation schedule, see
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/food/pwdu/fsp/meetings
See new PWDU training page at
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/food/pwdu/training.html
•
•
•
•
Healthy swimming tips
Lessons learned
Practical interventions
Ask the experts panel
The workshop will be held on
April 20, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00
noon at the MDH Snelling Office Park facility at 1645
Energy Park Drive in St. Paul.
For more information contact Trisha Robinson at 651201-5639 or [email protected].
Department of Homeland Security
Retail Security Awareness Training
http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/is912.asp
Department of Homeland Security has announced a
new course, Retail Security Awareness: Understanding
the Hidden Hazards (IS-912). The target audience for
this online course is the commercial retail community,
specifically retail managers, loss prevention and risk
management specialists, product managers, sales
associates, and others involved in retail operations.
MN Food Safety Partnership Video-Conference
For more information about training courses, contact:
[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]
hs.gov
The next Food Safety Partnership (FSP) videoconference will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
on Wednesday, June 6, 2012.
International Food Protection Training Institute
(IFTPI)
The meeting can be live-streamed at
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/food/pwdu/livestrea
m/survey.cfm.
An archive video will be online shortly after the
meeting. See past FSP presentations and materials at
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/food/pwdu/fsp/.
For CEUs or site information, contact Maggie Edwards,
651-201-4506, [email protected].
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
www.ifpti.org/applications
IFPTI is offering their course, Application of the Basics
of Inspection and Investigation (FD 170), May 14-16,
2012 in Battle Creek, MI. The all-expenses paid course
is appropriate for entry-level regulators involved in both
retail and manufactured foods.
IFPTI reimburses all program-related travel expenses
including airfare, hotel and meals for course attendees.
More information is available at www.ifpti.org.
Page 2 of 10
BUG OF THE QUARTER
Legionnaires' Disease and Pontiac Fever:
On the Rise
Background
Legionellosis is a potentially fatal infectious disease
caused by Legionella bacteria. More than 90 percent
of known legionellosis cases are caused by Legionella
pneumophila.
Legionellosis takes two distinct forms. Legionnaires'
disease is the more severe form of the infection and
produces high fever and pneumonia. Pontiac fever is
caused by the same bacteria but produces a milder
respiratory illness that resembles acute influenza.
Clinical Characteristics, Legionellosis
Legionnaires'
disease
Pontiac fever
Symptoms
Pneumonia: cough,
fever, chest pain
Flu-like illness (fever,
chills, malaise) without
pneumonia
X-Ray
indicates
pneumonia
Yes
No
Incubation
period
2-14 days after
exposure
24-48 hours after
exposure
Causal
agent
Legionella species
Legionella species
Attack rate
< 5%
Casefatality
rate
Outcome
Fountains, hot tubs, cooling towers, large plumbing
systems and the air-conditioning systems in large
buildings have all served as reservoirs. Outbreaks have
frequently been associated with hospitals, cruise
ships, hotels and other public buildings. Illness is most
common in the summer and early fall.
According to Centers for Disease Control (CDC),
people most at risk of legionellosis infection are
people 50 years and older, those who are current or
former smokers, and those who have a chronic lung
disease. People with other chronic diseases and
weakened immune systems are also at higher risk of
infection than the general public.
Numbers Up
According to an August 2011 report from CDC,
reported Legionellosis cases have nearly tripled over
the past ten years, from 1,110 cases in the year 2000
to 3,522 in 2009.
Some of the increase is undoubtedly due to better
reporting, improved diagnostics and increased
awareness. However, higher numbers of cases are also
believed to be associated with an aging population
and the effects of climate change (therefore more use
of air-conditioning).
A Sample of 2011 Outbreaks, North America
Date
Location
Reported
Cases
Source
> 90%
Aug-Oct
2011
Ontario, CA
4 Leg.
Cooling towers
suspected
5-30%
0%
Sep
2011
Ocean City,
MD
3 Leg.
Hotel water system
suspected
Hospitalization
common
Hospitalization
uncommon
Sep
2011
Allegheny
County, PA
10 Leg.
Nursing home
water system
Jul 2011
Las Vegas,
NV
“several”
Hotel hot water
system
Summer
2011
New York
State
5 Leg.
Standing water,
shredding plant
Jun
2011
Cleveland
3 Leg.
Nursing home
water system
Feb
2011
Los Angeles
3 Leg.
200
Pontiac
Playboy mansion
fog machine
Feb
2011
Ohio
5+ Leg.
Hospital plumbing
system
www.cdc.gov/legionella/top10.htm
Vulnerable Populations and Common Settings
An estimated 8,000 to 18,000 people are hospitalized
with Legionnaires' disease each year in the United
States. Sufferers of Pontiac fever are seldom
hospitalized. Both illnesses are greatly underreported.
Legionellae are freshwater bacteria that are found in
aquatic environments throughout the world. Some
man-made water systems also provide conditions
conducive to the growth of Legionella bacteria.
(Legionellosis, continued on next page)
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
Page 3 of 10
Legionella, continued
The authors of an August 2011 article in the Journal of
the American Medical Association (JAMA) urge
physicians to conduct more tests for Legionella
bacteria among patients with respiratory or flu-like
symptoms, particularly during the summer and early
fall when Legionella is at its peak.
Prevention and Detection
A 2007 white paper from the World Health
Organization (WHO) tells us that legionellosis disease
can best be addressed through prevention. This
includes regular cleaning and disinfection of water
systems where Legionella is likely to flourish and be
distributed.
WHO warns that hospitals have a particular
responsibility to employ preventive measures, as they
have complex water systems, water-dispersing
medical devices, and a resident population of those
individuals that are the most vulnerable to severe
infection.
One proven vehicle for Legionella
infection in hospitals has broad
implication in the wider community.
There are several documented cases
in the scientific literature of hospital
patients infected with Legionella via
contaminated ice machines. In one case a ventilatordependent patient was infected and died from
Legionella bacteria in the ice chips that were the only
thing he consumed by mouth.
The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air
Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is in the process of
revising their guidance for Legionella control. The new
standard employs the HACCP approach for
implementing Legionella risk management. The new
guidance indicates that ice production is a critical
control point for facilities applying HAACP to
Legionella control.
Also note that while many outbreaks are associated
with evaporative heating, cooling and air conditioning
systems, many other outbreaks have been related to
water systems in which water is aerosolized. These
include fountains and other water features. It may be
important to consider whether misting systems –
increasingly prevalent in groceries stores – may also
be a potential source of Legionella.
CDC Legionellosis Resource Site
www.cdc.gov/Legionella/
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
A Little History of Legionella:
Austin MN, Pontiac MI, Philadelphia PA
1957: The earliest documented outbreak of
Legionnaires' Disease occurred between June and
August of 1957 in Austin, Minnesota. 78 people
were hospitalized with acute respiratory disease.
Almost 60 percent (46) of the 78 cases worked at
the Hormel meat packing plant in Austin. The
source of the epidemic is now believed to be a
cooling tower at the plant. Twenty–two years
later, a study of survivors showed significantly
elevated antibodies to the (now named) L.
pneumophila.
1968: In July 1968, at least 144 employees of the
Pontiac, Michigan Health Department and
visitors to the building developed a relatively
mild illness that was called Pontiac Fever. The
attack rate was 95% in building occupants and
29% in building visitors. The cause of the illness
was traced to water from a condensing system. In
1980, laboratory studies confirmed the presence
of L. pneumophila.
1974: About 1,500 members of the Independent
Order of Odd Fellows attended a convention at
the Bellevue Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia in
September 1974. One to nine days later, 20 Odd
Fellows developed pneumonia. In 1977, a study
of survivors showed that four of 11 cases, but no
controls had elevated antibodies to L.
pneumophila.
1976-1977: In July 1976 nearly 4,000 members
of the Pennsylvania State American met at the
same hotel in Philadelphia where the Odd
Fellows had become ill in 1974.
By the end of August, 182 people had become ill
and 29 had died. Most of those affected were
hotel guests but 33 cases were not. Some of these
were members of a marching band that had
passed the hotel and people who watched a
parade on the street outside.
In an atmosphere of great public concern, CDC
determined that the hotel was the source of the
Signs and Symptoms
illness and that it was water-borne. Five months
Symptoms
of mild toCDC
moderate
toxoplasmosis
include
after the outbreak,
staff isolated
the agent
fever,
swollen
glands,
muscle
aches
and
pains,
and
responsible for the outbreak, determining that
it
fatigue.
Symptoms
usually
begin
within
one
to
three
was L. pneumophila.
weeks of exposure and resolve in two to four weeks.
Page 4 of 10
PROGRAM EVALUATION U PDATE
work on before the formal evaluation and recognize
strengths to share during the formal evaluation.
Improvement Begins with Self-Assessment
“Regulatory programs are not static; rather they are
dynamic, ever evolving programs. Acknowledging this,
the Program Standards provide a framework for
continuous improvement, based on meaningful public
health performance measurements. These
performance measures focus on reducing the
occurrence of factors that contribute to foodborne
illness within retail food and food service
establishments.” says the FDA.
Barbara Skoglund, MDH/FPLS
I keep six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who. Rudyard Kipling
Improvement begins with self-examination. We need
to answer the question “How are we doing?” before
we can compare ourselves to what we want to be and
develop an action plan to get there. Just as a New
Year’s resolution begins with stepping onto the scale,
our efforts to improve our programs and services
begin with self-evaluation.
With personal improvement we set our own goals. For
environmental health regulatory programs in
Minnesota we measure our program performance
against Minnesota laws and rules, the Delegation
Agreement and the FDA Voluntary National Retail
Food Regulatory Program Standards. The Program
Standards are designed to help ensure the safety and
security of the food supply at the retail level and the
ninth standard is program assessment.
Self-assessment is at the heart of national standards
and the MDH Food, Pools and Lodging Services
evaluation process. This process identifies a
program's strengths and areas in need of
improvement. Self-assessment is the first step in the
evaluation of delegated food, pool and lodging
inspection programs. Delegated programs are
required to complete the self-assessment tools and
tally up their scores before the formal evaluation.
FOOD AND FOOD SAFETY MATTERS
Farm to School and Salad Bar Resources
The Minnesota Departments of Agriculture and
Health, and Minnesota Extension fact sheet, Safe Use
of Salad Bars in Schools, is available at
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/hpcd/chp/cdrr/nutrition
/docsandpdf/SchoolSaladBarSafety.pdf.
Visit the Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools website at
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/hpcd/chp/cdrr/nutrition
/FTS/saladbars.html for many additional resources for
schools considering a salad bar option. These include:
Creating and Growing Edible Schoolyards: A
How to Manual for School Professionals from
the Anoka County Community Health and
Environmental Services Department’s SHIP
initiative and the Anoka–Hennepin Schools
Farm to School Videos: Five online trainings for
food service professionals from the University of
Minnesota Extension.
“Don’t be afraid to toot your own horn,” says Michelle
Messer, PWDU evaluator. “The self-assessment gives
agencies the opportunity to tell MDH about their
programs.” Local public health programs have found
great value in the self-assessment experience.
The short film, Farm To School: Growing Our Future
premiered at a Minneapolis theater on March 22, and
on Twin Cities Television (tpt) on March 25, 2012. For
more information and other airings, see
https://www.tpt.org/?a=programs&id=21863.
Programs do not have to wait for their scheduled
formal evaluation to begin working on a selfassessment. The self-assessment is available for any
agency to complete at any time and is online at
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/food/pwdu/delegati
onagreement.html.
The film will also be part of this year's University of
Minnesota, 8th Annual National Public Health Week
Film Festival on April 2, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. See
http://filmfest.advances.umn.edu/.
The tools provide a structure to help you ask Kipling’s
What, Why, When, How, Where and Who. By
completing the self-assessment before it is “due,”
programs can identify improvement opportunities to
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
The film was produced by tpt in
conjunction with the University of
Minnesota Extension Service based
on work and contributions of MDH
staff who are involved with the Farm
to School and Great Trays projects.
Page 5 of 10
WEB RESOURCES
CLIMATE CHANGE CORNE R
Of Possible Interest on the Web
NASA Finds 2011 Ninth-Warmest Year on Record
29 High Schoolers Infected with Rare E. Coli Strain
from Deer, J. Andrews, Food Safety News, January 12,
2012
www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/01/29-highschoolers-infected-with-rare-e-coli-strain-fromdeer/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&u
tm_campaign=120112
E. Coli O157 Increases Risk of Diabetes, M.S. Smith,
Food Safety News, January 10, 2012
www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/01/diabetes-linkedto-e-coli-and-otherillnesses/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=emai
l&utm_campaign=120110
www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/2011temps.html
NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies performs
ongoing monitoring of global surface temperatures
around the globe. The Institute released an updated
analysis in January that compares 2011 global
temperatures to the average global temperature from
the mid-20th century.
The average global surface temperature in 2011 was
0.92 degrees F (0.51 C) warmer than the mid-20th
century baseline. The 2011 average was also the ninth
warmest since 1880. Nine of the 10 warmest years in
since 1880 have occurred since the year 2000.
Explaining and Proclaiming Uncertainty: Risk
Communication Lessons from Germany’s Deadly E. coli
Outbreak, P. Sandman and J. Lanard, August 2011
www.psandman.com/col/GermanEcoli.htm
Key Nutrition Information for Most Popular Meat and
Poultry Products Coming to a Store Near You: New
Labels to Provide Consumers With the Information
They Need to Make Healthy Food Choices, News
Release, USDA, FSIS, March 1, 2012
www.fsis.usda.gov/News_&_Events/NR_030112_01/in
dex.asp
Notes from the Field: Escherichia coli O157:H7
Gastroenteritis Associated with a State Fair — North
Carolina, 2011, January 6, 2012 / 60(51);1745-1746
www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6051a
5.htm
Notes from the Field: Outbreak of Salmonellosis
Associated with Pet Turtle Exposures — United States,
2011, February 3, 2012 / 61(04);79
www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6104a
4.htm
The Imperfection of Human Inspectors: Lessons from
Florida Restaurant Inspections, G.Z. Jin and J. Lee,
March 2011
http://econ.as.nyu.edu/docs/IO/19018/Jin_03212011.
pdf
Preserving Foods through High Pressure Processing
(HPP), V.M. Balasubramaniam et al.
http://fst.osu.edu/1108feat_preservingfoods.pdf
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
Climate 'Grave Threat' to Security and Health
www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15342682
The BBC reported last October that medical, military
and academics experts meeting in London warned
that, climate change poses "an immediate, growing
and grave threat” to health and security around the
world.
The group issued a statement asking world leaders to
adopt more ambitious targets for the reduction of
greenhouse gasses. They said that climate change
impacts such as increasing costs for basic commodities
and the depletion of natural resources placed the
heaviest burdens on the poorest countries but were
already affecting us all.
Climate change mitigation strategies, said medical
attendees, “… would thus significantly cut rates of
preventable death and disability for hundreds of
millions of people around the world."
Page 6 of 10
PLAN REVIEW TOO
floor drain without a backwater valve is installed
on the individual drainage branch;
Rinser Sinks and
Blender Stations
The water supply to the washer is located below
the spill line of the machine must be protected
with an approved backflow preventer;
MDH EHS Plan Review Staff
Hot and cold water is required to any
equipment/fixtures that used for washing;
Recently smoothies have become
very popular. Some restaurants
have been adding equipment
called rinser sinks or blender
stations. Rinser sinks have a
sprayer in the bottom of a sink
Rinser sink sprayer
area. After a smoothie is made,
with
integral backflow
the blender pitcher is inverted
over the rinser apparatus and
sprayed with water to remove residual smoothie mix.
Handwashing sink: Ensure that there is an accessible
handwashing sink. Some of the older facilities do not
have a handwashing sink close to where they would
like to install the new equipment.
Typically the bar blender station dump sink is
plumbed correctly with hot and cold running water,
and directly wasted to the sanitary sewer. The new
rinser sinks have been a concern because they have in
some cases been installed and plumbed incorrectly.
Floor drains: Some units come with an attached ice
bin. An accessible floor drain must be available for ice
melt water. The condensate line must be properly airgapped.
All plumbing work done in the State of
Minnesota must be done by a licensed plumber.
During plan review, these older facilities are either
installing an additional handwashing sink or moving
the operation closer to the existing handsink.
Food Shields: If this new equipment is installed in the
front service counter, an approved food shield
meeting NSF Standards must be provided.
Finishes: Ensure that proper floor, base, wall and
ceiling finishes are provided in the new equipment
area.
Storage: Additional storage areas may be needed in
the walk in cooler for the cold products and in the dry
storage area for any unrefrigerated items.
Food Prep Sink: If fresh fruit is used with a smoothie
operation, a food preparation sink must also be
provided.
Bar blender station
Rinser sink built into
equipment
When reviewing this equipment for installation the
following items must be evaluated.
Correct plumbing installations and plumbing plan
review approval: The Department of Labor and
Industry has classified rinser sinks as “dishwashing ”
and has issued the following information regarding
installations:
The smoothie blender washer must either
discharge to the drainage system into a
dedicated vented receptor through an air break,
an air gap, or directly to the sanitary drain if a
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
Warewashing: Blenders must be monitored so that
they are properly washed, rinsed and sanitized every
four hours as required by the Minnesota Food Code.
NSF Equipment: All equipment must meet NSF
Standards.
Plan Review: Plans for rinser sinks and blender station
equipment must be submitted to the health
department for plan review prior to any construction
and installation.
Questions: Contact MDH plan review staff Pam
Steinbach, 651-201-5634, Charlotte Morgan 651-2013988, Barb Krech 651-201-5244, Mark Anderson, 320223-7357 or Sara Schaffer, 218-723-4834; or see
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/mhprca/locals.pdf
for contacts in local jurisdictions.
Page 7 of 10
LAWS, LICENSING, AND LEGISLATION
Minnesota Food Code Rule Revision Update
Linda Prail, MDH/FPLS
The Minnesota Food Code Rule Revision Advisory
Committee has finished meeting. A draft of the
Committee’s final report has been sent to Committee
members for review and editing. When the report is
finalized, it will be posted on the MDH website.
MDH and MDA managers and supervisors have
reviewed the Advisory Committee’s recommendations
and have decided which ones to accept. A letter with
their decisions will be sent to members and then
posted on the Website. A draft of the rule has been
submitted to Office of the Revisor of Statutes for
editing and formatting. Once the draft is returned
from the Revisor, MDH and MDA staff will review it.
After this internal review and any changes, the first
public draft will be made available on the website.
A meeting of the Advisory Committee will be held to
review and discuss the draft and statewide meetings
will be held to introduce and explain the new rule
language to all interested persons. Once we have a
better idea of when we will receive the draft from the
Revisor’s Office, more information about the date for
release of the first draft, the Advisory Committee
meeting and the statewide meeting will be available
on the website and in this newsletter.
As always, please contact Linda Prail if you have
questions. She can be reached at 651-201-5792 or
[email protected].
Legislation Update
On March 28, the Food, Pools and Lodging Services
Section was tracking the following bills:
HF 1417/SF 1176 concerns special event
camping fees in MDH jurisdiction.
HF 1442/SF 0743 deals with recycled water use
standards and natural swimming pools.
HF 1523/SF 1190 defines vacation home rentals.
HF 1579 establishes waivers for alternative
service delivery pilot programs in counties.
HF 1755/SF 1701 includes language relating to
local fees. It also divides the $60 private sewer
or water fee into a $30 fee for private sewer
and/or $30 for private water.
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
HF 2302/SF 1637 requires background checks
and fingerprinting for all lodging facility staff
and prohibits those previously convicted of
some crimes from working in lodging.
HF 2844/SF 2440 provides an exemption for a
naturally treated swimming pool in Minneapolis.
The end of the session approaches and the status of
each bill may change before you receive this
newsletter. Track bills that interest you at
www.leg.state.mn.us/leg/legis.aspx
Special Event Food Stands and Mobile Food
April Bogard, MDH/FPLS
A Special Reminder Regarding Special Event Food
Stands:
Minnesota Statutes 157.15
defines a “Special Event
Food Stand” as a food and
beverage service
establishment which is used
in conjunction with
celebrations and special
events, and which operates
no more than three times annually for no more than
ten total days.
This means that regardless of which jurisdictions the
special event stand is operating in, they can operate
no more than three times total and not for more than
10 days total during the year. If you’re wondering if a
special event food stand has already been licensed by
MDH (and may be over the 3-times or 10-day limits),
please call MDH at 651-201.4500.
MDH does not maintain a master list of all licensed
special event food stands in delegated jurisdictions,
but we’d be happy to facilitate inquiries to multiple
jurisdictions if you suspect a special event food stand
has already operated more than three times or for
more than 10 days.
Mobile Food Units:
Spring is in the air and the food trucks are parked on
every corner!
MDH staff reviews plans and licenses mobile food
units (MFU) that will be operating in MDH jurisdiction.
If the MFU will be operating in delegated jurisdictions
only, plan review and licensing is done by one or more
delegated jurisdictions.
Page 8 of 10
SPECIAL REPORT
Update: Inspection System Changes
Jennifer Miller, Jean Carrell & Tony Georgeson, MDH
As reported in the October 2011 PWDU Update, MDH
is working on a project known as the Electronic Field
Inspection System (EFIS). EFIS will be a web based
system that will eventually replace the Rapid
Inspection (RI) software currently used to store,
organize and retrieve information pertaining to
inspections of food, beverage and lodging
establishments; public pools; youth camps;
manufactured home parks and recreational camping
areas.
A team consisting of Food, Pools and Lodging Services
(FPLS) section staff and other MDH staff is being
coordinated by the Environmental Health Division’s
Information and Data Management Unit to proceed
with inspection system changes.
Local users have been surveyed regarding the system
changes, and will be consulted periodically throughout
the course of software development.
One of the main motivations for the project is that the
Minnesota Departments of Health and Agriculture are
in the process of amending the Minnesota Food Code
(Minnesota Rules, Chapter 4626). Additionally, the
inspection system changes and resulting EFIS software
will ensure that MDH programming and technology
standards are met.
Project staff are methodically working through the
initial stages of development and design of the EFIS
software. A framework showing how the system will
look and operate has been established, and some
initial screen shots have been designed and
demonstrated for preliminary review by user group
representatives.
The development of the EFIS software has involved
several different facets. Over the past few months,
FPLS field staff members have been testing the realworld experience of using Verizon/Sprint mobile
internet broadband connections (using wireless cards
purchased by MDH) on their laptops. The testing is
being conducted to identify areas within the state
where wireless internet connectivity is unavailable
and/or areas where transmission speeds are slow.
The results of these tests will help to address concerns
pertaining to internet connectivity issues that were
expressed by local partners during EFIS regional
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
meetings held in June 2011. Results from the
connectivity speed tests conducted to date show
adequate average performance for areas that have
been tested.
MDH field staff who have
participated in testing
report that the ability to
connect to the internet
and the MDH network will
be beneficial in several
ways.
Some members of the test
group emailed inspection reports directly to operators
while on site, thereby eliminating the need to print
reports on site. The connectivity has also enabled staff
to verify on-site license information, food manager
details, and access fact sheets and forms from the
MDH network and websites.
The testing has also revealed difficulties, including
network performance differences between
Sprint/Verizon network providers in some geographic
locations, and some documented issues of testers
experiencing very poor signal strength, no signal
(specifically indoors), or poor connection speeds.
These issues could be minimized over time with
improved coverage by providers.
Overall, the testing experience has shown that mobile
network and Internet access is a definite benefit to
staff in the field and could increase staff efficiencies
and communications.
Approximately 15% ($ 40,000) of the total budget
estimated thus far for the development of the EFIS
software ($ 272,000.00) has been expended. MDH
staff assigned to the EFIS project are working on the
development of the software as part of their normal
work hours. In addition to these personnel, MDH has
hired an Agile Consultant to help manage the project
and to introduce practices that will help to promote a
high level of user and stakeholder feedback. The cost
for this consultation ($25,000 to cover services
provided through the completion of the project) is
included in the total budget estimated for the EFIS
software development.
It is anticipated that the EFIS software will be released
sometime after September 30, 2013.
For more information about EFIS, please see:
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/local/foodinspect/ef
is.html
Page 9 of 10
TIP OF THE QUARTER
Norovirus Deaths & Employee Illness Policies
Too often, sanitarians and epidemiologists who
interview food establishment staff after a foodborne
illness outbreak discover that food workers are not
aware of the basic exclusion, restriction and reporting
requirements for employee illness.
Through file review, field evaluation and discussions
with staff in licensed facilities, MDH program
evaluation staff have also found this to be true in
many Minnesota establishments. Those deficits have
been reflected in program evaluation scores including
those for FDA Program Standard Three, Risk Based
Inspection, Standard Four, Uniform Inspection
Program, and in the general narrative of the final
report. See program evaluation tools at
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/food/pwdu/delegati
onagreement.html.
In March, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
reminded us again how critical employee hygiene and
illness policies were to preserving health and safety.
They announced that from 1999 to 2007, deaths from
gastroenteritis more than doubled, from 7,000 to
more than 17,000 per year.
Clostridium difficle accounted for two-thirds of those
deaths – most of these in elderly people who often
contract it in hospitals and nursing homes. This was
the first time, however, that Norovirus was shown to
be the likely second leading cause of death from
gastroenteritis in the United States.
We urge food inspectors to ask questions about
employee illness policies and to explore employee
familiarity with illness information during each
inspection, in accordance with FDA Standard Three
(www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/food/pwdu/evalfoo
dfinal.doc). When a working policy is not evident,
assist managers in exercising active managerial control
in the areas of hygiene and employee illness.
We encourage operators to put a policy in place, if
one does not exist, and to educate all your
establishment staff about that illness policy and
correct hygienic practices. Note that it is among the
duties of the Certified Food Manager (Minnesota
Rules 4626.2010) to ensure that, “policies and
procedures to prevent foodborne illness are
developed and implemented.“
Find tools and additional code requirements for
exclusion, restriction, reporting and education at:
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/food/fs/empillness.h
tml
PARTNERSHIP AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT UN IT STAFF CONTACTS
April Bogard Supervisor, PWDU
[email protected]
651-201-5076
Amanda Krentz, Germ City Intern
[email protected]
651-201-5659
Angie (Wheeler) Cyr, training, program evaluation, standardization
[email protected]
651-201-4843
Barbara Skoglund, communications, website, review
[email protected]
651-201-4825
Deborah Durkin, FSP, newsletter, food safety outreach
[email protected]
651-201-4509
Kim Carlton, training, program evaluation, standardization
[email protected]
651-201-4511
Lynne Markus, IARC, emergency response, climate change
[email protected]
651-201-4498
Maggie Edwards, administrative support
[email protected]
651-201-4506
Michelle Messer, training, program evaluation, standardization
[email protected]
651 201-3657
Nicole Koktavy, epidemiologist, EHS-Net coordinator
[email protected]
651-201-4075
M i n n e s o t a D e p a r t m e n t of H e a l t h ( M D H )
Division of Environmental Health
Orville L. Freeman Building
625 N. Robert Street, St. Paul MN, 55155
651-201-4500 or 1-888-345-0823
PWDU Quarterly Newsletter
Page 10 of 10