Pre-recorded webinar from the American Society on Aging

Change the Outcomes-  Nutritional Intervention as a Must-Have in Treating Chronic Conditions

Healing At Home and Reducing Readmissions – The Critical Role for Nutrition

Food Service Staff Training Videos (YouTube)

Using auto soap & towel dispenser (time 1:16)

Sanitation & Hygiene for Food Service Employees (time 3:01)

Gloves – Appropriate Use (time 3:02)

Cutting Boards  (time 3:48)

Calibrate a Stick Thermometer  (time 1:48)

Using Food Thermometer (time 2:55)

CDC Resources & Videos

Learn the risks and consequences of food poisoning in the new web series, Recipes for Disaster.  This series portrays a fictional cooking show where the host unintentionally makes common food safety mistakes.  Developed by CDC, could be used as nutrition education for older adults or as training for older volunteers. 

FoodFacts.com offers searchable information about specific foods and their ingredients, with free information provided to consumers. The site provides detailed information on over 12,000 common and not so common food ingredients. Foods, ingredients, chemical substances and additives can be searched by a number of common and easy to find search parameters. With FoodFacts.com, consumers can easily identify those ingredients they’d like to avoid and those they’d like to include more of in their diet. Food allergies like peanut, egg, dairy, soy and gluten no longer need to be hidden in their food ingredients. They’re easily identifiable, along with sugar, fat, calorie, protein and carbohydrate content. FoodFacts.com makes it easy to follow any diet or incorporate healthy food, healthy recipes and healthy eating into any lifestyle.

More Information

Food Service Equipment must be preoperly cleaned and maintained to provide a safe and sanitary operation. Keep equipment manuals readily available for training and routine cleaning and maintenance instructions.

Ice Machine

Earthquake Preparedness Training

Elderly Nutrition Programs in California are required to provide Earthquake Preparedness training each year for senior that participate in Senior Meals. The Disaster Center California Page has some great information to provide as well as maps and other practical information.

May 3-5, 2013

Becoming a Diabetes Educator

Boot Camp

Approved for 28 contact hours for RNs and Pharmacists, 24 CPE II for RDs. Provider is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing, Provider # 12640 and Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR), Provider # DI002. Need hours for your CDE®? We have great news. Since this program is accredited by the CDR, the hours of instruction can be used toward your CDE® regardless of your profession.

If it was easy to have your own business and be a good consultant everyone would be doing it and it would not be very lucrative. These are some of the many considerations for potential consultants.

Downside

• You may have a sense of isolation.
• You must wear many hats.
• You have all the responsibility.
• You take all the blame.
• You may find yourself temporarily without an income.

Clinical Competence

Prior to becoming a consultant you will need to develop strong clinical skills.

You may have to either specialize or become a generalist. It is possible to specialize in one area and still perform a multitude of other tasks.

Business Savvy

As a business owner and entrepreneur you will need to develop your own payment policies and establish your own fees. Many contracting agencies, hospitals, clinics or other organizations will have their own systems and policies that will need to be considered. Negotiating contracts will not be easy at first but you learn from experience. Remember, every contract is negotiable. So, as you get a better sense of what you should have done, you can take the opportunities to act on them when the time comes for a new contract.

Organization & Record Keeping

It is a good idea to develop your own system of finance, billing and accounting. Establishing a well organized method of filing and record-keeping is vital to healthy future growth. As time goes on these can be modified or outsourced, but keep a close eye on the process and outcomes. It is also important to maintain a record of performance outcome measures that you can use to evaluate yourself and your business. This can be useful for determining cost-benefit analyses and for negotiating contracts.

Communication

Establish an easy and reliable system of regular communication with clients, administrators, other professionals and perhaps insurance companies. Giving others the sense that you are available whenever they need you can win you many points.

Persistence

Many obstacles will get in the way of your progress. It is important that you have a clear vision of where you want to go and how you want to get there. You must be unwavering and undeterred by what you face in your efforts. Persistence is the key to your success.

Taking Risks

As an entrepreneur you must…

• be willing to take risks.
• tame your fears.
• accept uncertainty.
• plan contingencies.

If you want to create a business you must do it yourself. No one will do it for you.

Passion

• Make business a priority.
• Eat, sleep & breathe work.
• Maintain focus.
• Work hard, long hours.
• Consider it a 7-day a week proposition, at least for a while.
• Don’t give up.
• Love what you do.
• Make it your mission.

Confidence

• Promote yourself without pushing others away.
• Have patience.
• Gain respect in your community.
• Know what you want and how to get it.
• Do your homework, be prepared.
• Always study.
• Identify weaknesses and make adjustments as needed.

Making Your Decision

Before jumping into a consulting career you must do the following:

• Set goals.
• Develop a strategy and timeline.
• Identify benchmarks to evaluate progress.
• Know your strengths and weaknesses.
• Evaluate your skills and personality traits.
• Decide where to start and what to focus on.

Timing

Don’t wait until you feel you are ready, otherwise you will never do it. You must get used to the feeling that you are somewhat inept, but know that you will learn and grow from it.

Food Safety on the Go course for home-delivered meal programs is now available.

Sample Senior Nutrition Program Annual Training Plan

This was used for a train the trainer course for home-delivered meal programs held in Sacramento and Los Angeles.

Includes:

• Coursebooks
• Powerpoint Slides
• Pre-tests and Post-tests
• Trainer Guides 
• Trainer Worksheets

Module 1 – Food safety basics, is an overview of food safety for all staff and volunteers.

Module 2 – For the program director.

Module 3 – Food service management staff.

For a successful collaboration to occur, in-depth discussions need to take place. Some of the questions to be addressed are:

• Has each party clearly defined their roles and responsibilities and determined how compensation is to be calculated? Good contracts make good partnerships.

• Do the personalities of the group match up well? Does each individual show a willingness to discuss and compromise to some degree if needed?

• Are there “deal breakers” that each party would not be willing to accept, either before the program begins or after it is in place.

• Is each side willing to “give and take” not only as the program is initiated but as demand increases? Partnerships are sometimes difficult and each person involved needs to understand that some decisions that may not be ideal for one party may be for the greater good of the program.

• What is the structure of the new program? Is it a true partnership or a contracted labor agreement, possibly with bonuses included for patient goals met?

• What are the expectations (in detail) from each partner?

• Is there an exit strategy for both parties if the collaboration does not work out well?

• How will disputes be resolved and for how long is the agreement in place?

Managing Food Safety: A manual for the voluntary use of HACCP principles for operators of food service and retail establishments