A home health nurse is assisting in the care of a client.

Nurses' Notes Day 1:

Collecting client data on food safety.

Raw meats and raw vegetables are prepared together on one cutting board. Refrigerator is set to 6.7° C (44° F)

Leftovers are discarded after 7 days in refrigerator. Frozen foods are defrosted on the countertop.

Client washes hands for 10 seconds before cooking.

Leftovers are refrigerated after sitting on the countertop for 3 hr.

Reinforced client teaching about food safety. Follow-up visit scheduled in 2 weeks.

Day 14:

At client's home to collect follow-up data on food safety. Uses one cutting board to prepare raw meats and a different cutting board to prepare raw vegetables.

The refrigerator is set to 5.6° C (42° F).

Leftovers are discarded after 2 days in refrigerator. Frozen foods are defrosted in the refrigerator.

Client washes hands for 15 seconds before cooking.

Select the 4 findings that indicate an understanding of the reinforced teaching.

A.    The use of separate cutting boards for raw meats and vegetables is a fundamental food safety practice to prevent cross-contamination. On Day 14, the client demonstrates an
understanding of this by using one cutting board for raw meats and a different one for vegetables.
B.    Increasing the handwashing time from 10 seconds to 15 seconds is in line with food safety guidelines, which recommend washing hands for at least 20 seconds to effectively remove germs.
C.    Additionally, there was no information provided on the time leftovers sat unrefrigerated on the countertop, which should be minimized to prevent bacterial growth.
D.    The client did not demonstrate an understanding of safe refrigerator temperatures as the temperature did not meet the recommended setting of 4° C (40° F) or below.
E.    Defrosting frozen foods in the refrigerator is a safe practice to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria, which can occur when foods are defrosted on the countertop.
F.    Discarding leftovers after 2 days minimizes the risk of foodborne illnesses, as the longer food is stored, even in the refrigerator, the higher the risk of bacterial growth.