Some determinants of work performance in foodservice systems. Job satisfaction and work values of school foodservice personnel

Job performance, job satisfaction, and work orientation of 304 women foodservice employees in twenty-four schools in seven districts were examined. Work values and job satisfaction of school and hospital foodservice employees were also compared. Work values varied little between the two groups. The school employees, however, were more satisfied with their work, supervision, and co-workers than were the hospital employees. School employees were divided into high- and low-performance groups through supervisory ratings of six dimensions of performance. The high-performance group had significantly higher satisfaction scores than the low-performance group. The former group had been employed longer and worked more hours per day than the latter.     

Competencies of foodservice directors/managers required in health care operations

The purpose of this research was to determine competencies of foodservice directors/managers as required by health care administrators and to ascertain the degree to which dietetic curriculums address those competencies. Validated questionnaires were mailed to a random sample of 376 health care administrators and 154 dietetic educators from various types of educational programs. Each questionnaire included 57 competencies representing the following areas: financial, technical, personnel management, nutrition services, production, and marketing. Health care administrators were asked to rate the degree of importance for each competency. Dietetic educators assessed the degree to which each competency was addressed in their curriculums. Of the 288 returned questionnaires, 243 contained usable data. Health care administrators' mean ratings were compared with dietetic educators' mean ratings. Significant differences were noted in 44 of the 57 competencies. Dietetic educators placed significantly greater emphasis on competencies related to nutrition services and significantly less on financial competencies than did health care administrators. Significant differences also were observed for selected competencies classified as technical and production. Results indicated that dietetic educators must continually evaluate curriculums and respond to the changing needs of the health care industry.     

Expanding the public health emergency preparedness competency set to meet specialized local and evolving national needs: a needs assessment and training approach.

This article presents an approach to competency development created at the South Central Center for Public Health Preparedness to expand and refine existing competency sets for public health emergency responders. The technique uses course content generated by subject matter experts to validate and expand existing national competency sets. New competencies based on local needs were identified that provide coverage of subject matter appropriate to local public health emergency responders beyond the focus of existing national competency sets.     

A needs assessment of medical school faculty: caring for the caretakers

INTRODUCTION: We conducted an assessment of need for faculty development and mentoring in a medical school to guide program planning and use of scarce resources. METHODS: A multifaceted approach included semi-structured interviews, nominal group process, and a 36-item questionnaire to reach all faculty in the school, including senior administrators. RESULTS: With a 72% response rate, we validated the questionnaire and, using principal components analysis, identified and prioritized the eight interpretable subdimensions: personal growth, achieving balance, teaching, professional networking, research, administrative skills, career progression, and diversity/ethics. All groups of faculty prioritized learning for sustaining their vitality, balancing their personal and professional lives, finding meaning in their work, relationships, and personal growth. Senior administrators prioritized the following for faculty: time management, an institutional outlook, teamwork, and improved performance in teaching, research, and clinical practice. Junior faculty expressed the need for mentoring, scholarship, research, and career planning. DISCUSSION: Attention to faculty humanistic needs and the disparity between the perceived needs by faculty and senior administrators may help explain the attrition of faculty in academic medicine.     

Hazard analysis critical control point approach: epidemiologic rationale and application to foodservice operations

Operations in foodservice establishments that have contributed to foodborne disease have been identified during investigation of outbreaks. Examination of foodborne disease surveillance data discloses need for a new or modified approach to foodborne disease control. Recommended constituents of a new approach include (a) Hazard analysis to identify operations in which foods could become contaminated, to determine whether or not pathogens survive heat treatment, and to detect opportunities for pathogenic bacteria to multiply to concentrations that are dangerous to the consumer; (b) Identification of critical control points of the operation; (c) Implementation of appropriate control and preventive measures; (d) Monitor, routinely, operations at each critical control point.     

Emergency preparedness: knowledge and perceptions of Latin American immigrants

This paper describes the level of public emergency knowledge and perceptions of risks among Latin American immigrants, and their preferred and actual sources of emergency preparedness information (including warning signals). Five Latino community member focus groups, and one focus group of community health workers, were conducted in a suburban county of Washington D.C. (N=51). Participants came from 13 Latin American countries, and 64.7% immigrated during the previous five years. Participants had difficulty defining emergency and reported a wide range of perceived personal emergency risks: immigration problems; crime, personal insecurity, gangs; home/traffic accidents; home fires; environmental problems; and snipers. As in previous studies, few participants had received information on emergency preparedness, and most did not have an emergency plan. Findings regarding key messages and motivating factors can be used to develop clear, prioritized messages for communication regarding emergencies and emergency preparedness for Latin American immigrant communities in the U.S.     

Disaster preparedness and the chronic disease needs of vulnerable older adults

About 80% of older adults have at least one chronic condition that makes them more vulnerable than healthy people during a disaster. These chronic conditions - combined with the physiological, sensory, and cognitive changes experienced as part of aging - result in frail older adults having special needs during emergencies. Planning and coordination among public health and emergency preparedness professionals and professionals who provide services for the aging are essential to meet these special needs. Several tools and strategies already exist to help prepare these professionals to protect and assist older adults during a disaster. These include having professionals from diverse fields work and train in coalitions, ensuring that advocates for older adults participate in community-wide emergency preparedness, and using community mapping data to identify areas where many older adults live.     

Status of training programs and perceived labor problems in four types of noncommercial foodservice operations

Training is essential for the effective delivery of quality foodservice products. A well-developed training program is ongoing, comprehensive, planned in advance, and performance based. Such programs facilitate performance and may be beneficial to develop employees and reduce employee turnover rates. The purpose of this study was to investigate the kinds of training programs that are being developed and delivered to employees in noncommercial foodservice operations. A survey instrument was mailed nationally to foodservice directors and administrators in health care and educational foodservice operations requesting information about training programs used for their nonsupervisory foodservice employees. Information regarding perceived existence of potential labor problems was also collected. Relationships between training programs and perception of labor problems were investigated. Training appears to be conducted in some form within the four types of noncommercial foodservice operations investigated. The most severely perceived labor problems among nonsupervisory employees include low motivation, lack of skills, and poor promotability.     

Emergency preparedness and public health systems lessons for developing countries

Low- and middle-income countries, where emerging diseases often make their debut, are also likely to bear the harshest consequences of a potential influenza pandemic. Yet public health systems in developing countries are underfunded, understaffed, and in many cases struggling to deal with the existing burden of disease. As a result, developed countries are beginning to expand assistance for emergency preparedness to the developing world. Given developing countries' weak infrastructure and many competing public health priorities, it is not clear how to best direct these resources. Evidence from the U.S. and other developed countries suggests that some investments in bioterror and pandemic emergency preparedness, although initially implemented as vertical programs, have the potential to strengthen the general public health infrastructure. This experience may hold some lessons for how global funds for emergency preparedness could be invested in developing countries to support struggling public health systems in responding to current health priorities as well as potential future public health threats.