Norovirus Hot Spot Program for Restaurants Launched by PURELL and Public Health Innovations
The PURELL® brand has partnered with Public Health Innovations to launch an innovative tool to help prevent the spread of norovirus in restaurants.
The NOROVIRUS HOT SPOT™ Program is an operating procedure, training tool, and job aid all in one. It will educate restaurant employees on germ transmission “hot spots”—surfaces like restroom door handles, faucet handles, and stall latches—where employees can unknowingly contract the virus and then further contaminate kitchen surfaces and foods simply through touch.
"It’s essential that restaurants have a food safety plan in place that reduces the risk of transmission and cross-contamination from pathogens, such as norovirus,” says Hal King, Ph.D., president, Public Health Innovations and partner, Active Food Safety.
“Norovirus is highly contagious and tough to kill. That is a challenging combination to overcome. If an employee works while they are symptomatic—or even asymptomatic—it’s nearly impossible to prevent a norovirus outbreak.”
“The NOROVIRUS HOT SPOT™ Program was developed to guide restaurant employees to the hot spots that should be regularly cleaned and sanitized using a surface sanitizer with fast germ-killing power, like PURELL® Foodservice Surface Sanitizer, which kills norovirus in 30 seconds and hepatitis A in 60 seconds,” King said.
The program also provides recommendations for what to do at times of an escalated risk—such as if a customer gets sick in the restaurant, or an employee works while ill.
PURELL | PURELL.com
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