Profile of catering staff at a tertiary care hospital in Mumbai

Background Food borne illnesses, even today, continue to be a major public health problem in both developing and developed nations. Food handlers play an important role in ensuring food safety throughout the chain of production, processing, storage and preparation. Health of food handlers is of great importance for maintaining hygienic quality of food prepared and served by them. Thus, the present study was conducted to study socio-demographic characteristics, morbidity pattern and immunization status of catering staff at a tertiary care hospital in Mumbai Method A cross sectional study was conducted from August 2010 to November 2010. Out of the total of 162 food handlers working in 11 food service establishments, 137 were interviewed face to face using a semi-structured questionnaire, while remaining 25 food handlers were excluded because of either their absence or not giving consent. The food handlers were assessed clinically for personal hygiene and investigated for hemoglobin, stool routine and sputum AFB examination. Results 82 (59.8%) food handlers were from the age group 10 - 29 years, 113 (82.5%) male, 95 (69%) married, 59 (43.1%) educated up to primary level. Only 7 (5.1%) had ever received a dose of typhoid vaccine. 103 (75.2%) had an addiction, majority consuming gutkha 59 (57.3%). Dental caries 32 (23.4%) was the most common morbidity identified. Entamoeba histolytica was isolated in 13 (9.5%) subjects. Conclusion This study has confirmed an association between educational status and personal hygiene suggesting the need for greater personal hygiene in this group. Pre-employment and periodical medical examination should be encouraged.