Which of the following statements related to safe food handling practices is INCORRECT?

BTSC Staff Nurse 1 August-2025

Community Health Nursing

Medium

Appeared in: BTSC Staff Nurse 1 August-2025

Explanation

The statement that a person with wounds, otitis media, or skin infections is permitted to handle food is incorrect.
These conditions pose a significant risk of contaminating food with pathogenic microorganisms, such as Staphylococcus aureus, which is commonly found in skin infections and can cause food poisoning.
Food safety regulations universally require that individuals with such active infections be excluded from handling food or food-contact surfaces until they have fully recovered and are no longer infectious.

Option A: This is a correct statement. A complete medical examination at the time of employment is a standard and essential practice to screen for communicable diseases.
Option B: This is a correct statement. Educating food handlers on personal hygiene, proper handling techniques, and pest control is crucial for preventing foodborne illnesses.
Option D: This is a correct statement. Individuals with a history of certain communicable diseases like typhoid fever, tuberculosis, and dysentery should not be employed as food handlers due to the risk of being asymptomatic carriers.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Food Safety and Hygiene Regulations for Food Handlers as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Nurses in community and occupational health play a vital role in educating and screening food handlers to prevent large-scale foodborne illness outbreaks.
Patient education is a key nursing responsibility. When treating patients with skin infections (e.g., boils, impetigo), nurses must advise them to avoid preparing food for others to prevent transmission.
What if? If a food handler has a very minor cut on a finger, they might be permitted to work if the cut is properly cleaned and covered with a brightly colored, waterproof bandage and a single-use glove. However, active infections like otitis media or infected wounds always require exclusion from food handling.

How to Approach the Question

First, recognize the negative framing of the question, which asks for the 'INCORRECT' statement. This means you are looking for the one false statement among three true ones.
Evaluate each option based on fundamental principles of hygiene and infection control.
Consider Option A (medical exam), Option B (education), and Option D (exclusion for disease history). These all represent logical and standard safety precautions in the food industry.
Now, analyze Option C. It suggests that it is permissible for someone with an active infection or open wound to handle food.
This directly contradicts the basic goal of food safety, which is to prevent contamination. An infected person is a primary source of contamination.
Therefore, the statement in Option C is clearly false and the correct answer to this negatively framed question.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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E6 Parks TextBook of Preventive & Social Medicine part 2 — Subpart A (pp 1-232 of 464) p. 193-195

E6 Parks TextBook of Preventive & Social Medicine part 1 — Subpart B (pp 202-403 of 604) p. 96-98