By Carol A. Cates, MSN, MBA, RN
Chief Nursing Officer
Odessa Regional Medical Center
Today is Memorial Day and before I talk about anything else, I want to say “Thank You” to those who are currently serving or have served in our Armed Forces. There are no words to express how grateful I am that you serve our country in such an amazingly selfless way. More than that, though, because it is Memorial Day, I wanted to thank the families of those that gave their lives for this country. Memorial Day exists to remember the extraordinary people who gave their lives for this country and so we can honor their families who have lost so much. A Thank you is not even close to adequate for what those people who sacrificed so much have given, but they are the only words I have. Thank You!
Also, because it is Memorial Day, and the unofficial start of summer, I wanted to talk about food safety during summer events. I am very much hoping that this year the COVID risk in our community will remain low and we get to go back to the big get togethers with family and friends during the summer holidays and vacations. With those summer get togethers, however, please remember to practice food safety. Food poisoning is common, unfortunately. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) every year approximately 48 million people, or 1 in 6 Americans get sick from food poisoning, also known as food-borne illness, each year. 128,000 of those people are sickened enough to require hospitalization, and 3,000 of those people die. Anyone can get food poisoning, but some people are more vulnerable. Those most vulnerable to food poisoning are adults over 65, children under 5, people who have weakened immune systems, and pregnant women. People who are vulnerable to food poisoning should not eat undercooked or raw food from animals (meat, or eggs), raw or lightly cooked sprouts, unpasteurized milk and juices, or soft cheeses made from unpasteurized milk.
There are 4 basic steps to avoiding food poisoning, not just in the summer months, but all year long. Those are clean, separate, cook, and chill. Clean means to wash your hands and work surfaces before, during, and after preparing food. Separate raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs from ready-to-eat foods. Use separate cutting boards and utensils for those items. Keep raw meat away from other foods in your shopping cart and refrigerator. Cook food to the right internal temperature to kill harmful bacteria and use a food safe thermometer to check temperatures. The CDC has a list of recommended minimum temperatures for most common foods, including microwave and reheated meals on their website at tinyurl.com/c485r7wn. Chill foods within 2 hours of cooking or within 1 hour if exposed to temperatures above 90 degrees, and keep your refrigerator at 40 degrees or below.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA), the federal organization that monitors for safety and quality in farmed products (meat, produce, eggs, etc.), recently did several test kitchens where they watched food safety practices in volunteers. 56% of those people didn’t attempt to wash their hands before, during, or after meal preparation. Another 45% of people didn’t verify their foods were cooked to a safe temperature by using a food thermometer. Failure to separate foods was also a big problem, with 32% of participants not isolating food, cutting boards, or utensils. Make sure you account for this as you cook and eat outdoors by having hand sanitizer available when there isn’t a space to wash hands with soap and water, pay particular attention to making sure foods are kept separated, and use a food thermometer on grilled foods to make sure they are done to the correct temperature.
The biggest problem reason for food poisoning in the summer food that does not get chilled properly. The germs that cause food poisoning love warm temperatures and reproduce rapidly in the summer heat. Remember food must be refrigerated or chilled on ice to a temperature of 40 degrees or less within 1 hour of cooking or serving if it is exposed to any temperature above 90 degrees.
I hope you have a wonderful Memorial Day, stay safe and please say “Thank You” to those wonderful people who serve our country in the Armed Forces, past or present, and thank their families as well.
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