A report has been made regarding a foreign body found in food. This article explains how to log the report using the 'Foreign Body' form in the Helpline Module.
- In the left vertical navigation menu, click 'Helpline'.
- Click the 'Add Case' tab.
- Click the 'Foreign Body' option located in the 'Food' section.
Logging the case
Location: This is automatically populated for users who have access to a single location. For users with access to multiple locations, either type the location name or click 'Show List' and choose the location from the list.
Department: Which area of the business the case relates to, for example, Private Dining Suite, Terrace Café. This is an optional field.
Your internal reference: Use for any internal reference system. This is an optional field.
What was the object found? (Please describe it in detail): Log as much detail about the object as possible. Use as many descriptive words as possible. This could include, shape, size, colour, texture, material type (ie, plastic, metal etc).
Date and Time of incident: Click the calendar icon to choose a date from the calendar or click the date field to type the date the suspect meal /food was consumed. Add the time using the up and down arrows on the hours (HH) and minutes (MM) fields.
How were you notified of the incident? How was the complaint received into the business? (drop-down option)
- Click 'Save Case' to save the Foreign Body case under the 'My Cases' tab.
Updating a case
Once a case has been raised, further information should be added as the matter is investigated through to conclusion. The case is now available via the 'My Cases' tab.
The case can be identified using the:
- 'Location' column to identify which location the case was logged at.
- 'Date' column to identify the date the case was raised.
- The 'Type' column to identify the type of case raised, ie, 'Near Miss' or 'Foreign Body'.
- Once the correct case is identified, click the relevant Reference number to open the record.
- Click the 'Edit' buttons to expand the sections.
- Specific details can now be recorded in the relevant fields.
- When all updates have been made, click the 'Save Changes' button for that section.
- Click the 'View' button to view the information in any section.
- The fields relating to each section are listed below.
Incident Details
Name of person who discovered foreign body: The name of the person who first saw the foreign body in the food.
Are they: This may not be a customer complaint. A member of staff may identify the foreign body before the food is served. The finding should still be recorded.
Age: The age range of the affected person (select 'Unknown' where complainant or affected person refuse to provide details).
Email address: The complainant may choose to provide an email address as a preferred method of communication.
Phone Number: Contact number - Shield Safety do not phone customers on your behalf, but you may wish to log a number for follow up calls.
Address: Shield Safety do not write to guests on your behalf unless you directly request our assistance.
Describe where the object was found (e.g. in mouth, in food, on plate, in packet): Identifies where the finder first encountered the foreign body.
Detail the food item/meal in which the foreign body was found (name, use by date, batch number, number sold that day): Be as specific as possible. An investigation may be required if the foreign body was identified in food from a batched source.
Did the customer take away all or part of the foreign body: If 'Yes' a new text field is opened to record the details.
Has it been sent to a lab for analysis? If 'Yes' a new text field is opened to record the details. Record the details of the lab (including address), the date and time the item was sent, the method of sending and whether the item was sent whole or in part.
Was the customer injured by the foreign body? If 'Yes' a new text field is opened to record the details of the injury.
Has the customer received treatment for any injury? If 'Yes' a new text field is opened to record the details of the treatment, who it was provided by and what 1st aid resources were used.
Has the enforcing authority been informed? If 'Yes' a new text field is opened to record the details of the agency contacted, plus the name of the contact and the date and time of the call. References numbers should also be recorded.
Please enter the date and time that the customer visited your premises: This may differ from the time the complainant consumed the suspect food.
Customer communication
This section is used mainly to recorded any customer interactions relating to this case.
To assure your guests that complaints are taken seriously you should keep open channels of communication with them throughout the investigation. Investigations may take several weeks or longer to complete and the guest needs to be assured that they are not being ignored.
Initial Investigation
This section is used to record the immediate observations relating to the discovery.
Internal Investigation
Please detail the findings of your delivery investigation: If the foreign body was discovered in food made of products delivered to the premises, details of the delivery records for those products should be recorded. The delivery area should also be inspected and any findings recorded.
Please detail the findings of your restaurant investigation: Record details of records checks relating to products handled and sold. Note whether these practices are in accordance with your Food Safety Policy. Review all logs which may account for the presence of the foreign body, such as maintenance records or breakage logs. Log observations from food preparation area walkaround including adherence to food policy processes, use of PPE, risks of contamination, service area and display area cleanliness.
Please detail the findings of your kitchen investigation: Log observations from food preparation area walkaround including adherence to food policy processes, use of PPE, risks of contamination, service area and display area cleanliness.
Has the General Manager been notified of any injuries/potential claims? A prompt to ensure the correct escalations are followed.
Has the customer been contacted with feedback? Details of any information provided to the customer as a result of the investigations and when it was provided.
Actions Taken
Use this section to log any follow up activities which have taken place as a result of your own internal investigation.
If any of these questions are answered “Yes”, a text field is opened to record the details.
With the exception of the final question, if you have answered “No” to all of these questions, you are confirming that all processes were applied correctly, and your procedures and processes are robust. The final question is to provide justification in circumstances where no changes have been made.
Action plan
From your investigation, you can create an action plan, e.g. retrain part-time waiting staff. You can enter as many action points as are needed to prevent repeat incidents. To add a new Action, click the "+ Add Action" button.
The Shield Safety team can also create action plans for you which will appear in this section.
Reports can be extracted by Admin users to see where action plans have exceeded their deadlines.
Notes
Shield Safety use the Notes section to communicate with you about the case. They may ask for documents, photographs, extra information or clarifications, Please respond to these as quickly as possible by “Adding a Note”.
If you are asked to add a photo etc, please put a note here to say “picture added” or something similar.
Users may receive RiskProof alerts to inform them that Shield Safety have added a note to the case. This is subject to User Role Alert settings.
You can also add your own notes to Shield Safety via this method.
Photos and attachments
If you are requested to provide documents etc either via the Notes or Action Plan section, this is where you upload them.
Simply click the link and select the relevant file. Is it really helpful if file names clearly identify the subject e.g. “Close up of foreign material”