Thank you for your patience over the past couple of months as our office has been transitioning due to staff changes. Our regular posts will resume shortly.
Angie Davis Is Moving On…
Many of you receiving our blog posts have worked with– or are familiar with–Angie Davis of our Cobb Environmental Health office. We wanted you to know that, effective May 1st, she will become the new Director of Environmental Health for Clayton County. We wish her much success as she moves on to the next level of her career. Her 16 years plus service with the Cobb & Douglas health district has been invaluable.
Get to Know the Georgia Smokefree Air Act
Secondhand smoke is harmful to one’s health; especially to the young, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals. Most food service establishments do well overall in their compliance with the Georgia Smokefree Air Act of 2005; however, questions will occasionally come up, such as, “How close to the entrance should customers be allowed to smoke?” and “What if I have a private party room and want to allow smoking?” The answers to these and other commonly asked questions–along with great reminders–can be found in the Georgia Smokefree Air of 2005 Guide for Business Owners and Employees and at the following website:
Looking for a CFSM Class?
Our March ServSafe class is full; however, we will be presenting another class next month in partnership with the Cobb County Extension Service on April 18-19 in the Cobb Extension Service Training Room (678 South Cobb Drive, Marietta, GA 30060). Please see our Certified Food Safety Manager Courses page for the registration form for this class. Additional CFSM classes being offered by Cobb & Douglas Public Health, as well as other resources for CFSM training can also be found on this page.
Direct link:
http://www.cobbanddouglaspublichealth.com/environmental-health/food-services/food-safety-training/
Upcoming Employee Health Webinar!
The Georgia Department of Public Health’s Environmental Health Section and the Georgia Restaurant Association (GRA) are jointly presenting a webinar about Employee Health on Tuesday, March 7, 2017 from 2:00 – 3:00 PM. Membership in the GRA is not required to view and listen during the live presentation nor is there a charge; however, preregistration for the webinar is required.
Additional information and the registration link can be found here:
http://web.garestaurants.org/events/Webinar-Employee-Health-215/details
Resources for Handling Sick Employees
Regardless of the time of year, food service workers may become ill and try to come to work with a sore throat, fever, jaundice, diarrhea, and/or vomiting. The employee may think he can manage his symptoms and make it through the business day, but his continued presence in your establishment could spread the illness to your customers and co-workers, and ultimately result in a foodborne illness outbreak.
Beginning on page 34, the Rules and Regulations for Food Service address employee health and establishes the criteria to help you determine if a food service worker exhibiting any of these symptoms needs to be restricted from his duties or excluded from work altogether. And if an employee is excluded, details are provided for determining when he can be cleared to come back to work.
To help guide you through assessing and addressing employee health in your facility, the Georgia Department of Public Health provides many useful tools at the following link:
http://dph.georgia.gov/food-service-rules-and-documents
Scroll down to the Employee Health Information section to find quick decision guides, medical clearance forms, an employee health and hygiene handbook, a list of approved disinfectants, and more!
Care Facility Outbreak Prevention Training Scheduled for February 7, 2017
The spread of a infectious diseases in a care facility can have a serious impact on the health and well-being of their residents, as well as their staff. Just last year, there were two large Norovirus outbreaks in Cobb County facilities, so our Environmental Health and Epidemiology divisions have teamed up to present a Care Facility Outbreak Prevention Training on February 7th from 1:30-3:30 PM at the Cobb Chamber of Commerce. There is no charge for the training; however, registration is required. The registration form can be found at this link:
Care Facility Outbreak Prevention Training Registration Form
