A restaurant that serves a highly susceptible population (such as a hospital) has a food handler diagnosed with nontyphoidal Salmonella but showing no symptoms. What is required?
a.Let the handler keep working his normal station, because an asymptomatic laboratory diagnosis cannot change what a hospital kitchen is permitted to serve its patients
b.Ignore the laboratory result until the handler actually develops vomiting or diarrhea, then send him home for one shift and return him to the line when the vomiting stops
c.Restrict the handler to nonfood tasks such as operating the dishmachine and folding napkins, and return him to his station once a second stool sample has been collected
d.Exclude the handler, because facilities serving highly susceptible populations must exclude handlers diagnosed with nontyphoidal Salmonella even without symptoms
Explanation
When serving a highly susceptible population, a food handler diagnosed with nontyphoidal Salmonella must be excluded even if asymptomatic, because these guests are especially vulnerable. In a general operation that same asymptomatic diagnosis may be restricted rather than excluded — restriction is the wrong answer here only because of the highly susceptible population in the stem, which raises the standard to exclusion. The diagnosis itself, not the appearance of symptoms, is what triggers the action, so letting the handler work normally or waiting for symptoms is unsafe.
Law Reference: FDA Food Code §2-201.11Practice all 500 questions free — no signup required.
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