FLOQSwab™: Optimisation of Procedures for the Recovery of Microbiological Samples from Surfaces

Understanding Domestic Food Safety: An Investigation into Self-Reported Food Safety Practice and Associated Factors in Southern Ethiopian Households

BACKGROUND

According to available studies, 12%-20% of reported foodborne outbreaks start in the household. It is projected that 1 out of every 10 persons will become ill as a result of consuming tainted food. Poor food handling practices cause 600 million foodborne illnesses each year. In a given year, this leads to 420 000 deaths. In Ethiopia, there is a scarcity of studies on home-food-safety practices and the factors that affect them. This has resulted in a shortage of relevant information on the status of home-food-related illnesses in the country.

METHODS

A community-based cross-sectional study was carried out from May to June 23, 2021. A standardized and pre-tested questionnaire was used to collect data from 622 households. The total plate count method was used to analyze bacteria on cleaned plates. Epi data version 3.1 was used to enter data, while SPSS version 25 was used to analyze the data. Descriptive statistics and multivariable regression were used to characterize the data and identify factors associated with food safety practices.

RESULT

51.1% of the study participants had a safe food handling practice. The mean total plate count was 2.34 CFU/cm². In the multivariable regression, Household wealth (AOR = 2.05, 95% CI [1.01-3.16]), Education (AOR = 3.33, 95% CI [1.41-6.31]), Training (AOR = 2.85, 95% CI: [1.31-3.19]), Knowledge of safe practices (AOR = 1.95, 95% CI [1.23-3.08], and Attitude (AOR = 2.04, 95% CI [1.09, 3.82]) were associated with safe food handling practices.

CONCLUSION

Although data gathering systems for food-borne diseases typically overlook a large number of home-based outbreaks of sporadic infection, it is now widely understood that many episodes of food-borne sicknesses are caused by individuals' inappropriate food handling and preparation in their kitchens. In the current study, educational status, household wealth, food safety training, attitude, and knowledge about FBDs were found to be strongly associated with safe practices. This implies that public education is a key factor in improving food safety practices at home.

Approach to Assessment of New Swabs and Viral Transport Media for SARS-CoV-2 Testing

In light of the present pandemic of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the unprecedented high demand for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) testing worldwide, there are shortages of established specimen collection devices for respiratory viral testing for diagnostic microbiology laboratories. This creates the need to validate unverified collection devices from manufacturers that may not be a registered supplier for medical devices.

In light of the present pandemic of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the unprecedented high demand for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) testing worldwide, there are shortages of established specimen collection devices for respiratory viral testing for diagnostic microbiology laboratories. This creates the need to validate unverified collection devices from manufacturers that may not be a registered supplier for medical devices. As clinical laboratories do not routinely perform quality control of established collection devices, there is a need to have a systematic, robust approach to the assessment of substitute unregistered collection swabs and viral transport media (VTM). A discussion of the aspects requiring consideration when determining the suitability and implementation of new collection devices is presented. These specific assessment criteria include an inspection of device integrity, determination of swab and VTM sterility and in vitro performance, VTM stability, and examination of the clinical performance of the device. This method was used in a front-line medical microbiology laboratory on swabs and VTM from an unregistered manufacturer, with suboptimal results that precluded implementation. As the pandemic continues, it will be important for diagnostic laboratories to adopt a flexible and streamlined approach to maintaining adequate supply chains for testing reagents and materials.