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  4. TRAINING AND NATIONAL PROGRAM STANDARDS
  1. Office of Training Education and Development (OTED)

TRAINING AND NATIONAL PROGRAM STANDARDS

In April of 1998 the Food and Drug Administration at the Conference for Food Protection unveiled its proposed Recommended National Retail Food Regulatory Program Standards. The purposes of these standards are to serve as a guide to regulatory retail food program managers in the design and management of a retail food program and to provide a means of recognition for those programs that meet these standards. The intent in the development of these standards is to establish a basic foundation in design and management of a retail food program.

Training courses in this catalog relating to retail food are in concert with the Recommended National Food Regulatory Program Standards.

There are nine recommended standards:

Standard #1 -- Regulatory Foundation
Standard #2 -- TRAINED REGULATORY STAFF
Standard #3 -- Inspection Program based on HACCP Principles
Standard #4 -- Uniform Inspection Program
Standard #5 -- Foodborne Illness Response
Standard #6 -- Compliance and Enforcement
Standard #7 -- Industry Recognition
Standard #8 -- Program Resources
Standard #9 -- Program Assessment

Standard #2--Trained Regulatory Staff applies to the essential elements of a training program for a regulatory staff. More specifically, at least 90% of the regulatory staff conducting inspections of retail establishments must satisfactorily complete a training curriculum that includes the following components:

  1. Public health principles
  2. Communication skills
  3. Microbiology
  4. Epidemiology
  5. Statues, regulations ordinances
  6. HACCP

In addition at least 90% of the regulatory staff must satisfactorily complete field training which includes:

  1. Joint training Inspections
  2. Independent Inspections and
  3. Standardization inspections

Plus each employee must accumulate 20 contact hours of continuing education every two years.

FDA is seeking your input and comments on these recommended standards. In the meantime we are proceeding to provide training which follows Standard #2.

These efforts include:

  • Microbiological Controls course via satellite--delivered August 11-13, 1998; this course is now available as a A packaged course@ via our lending library.
  • Investigation of Foodborne Disease course via satellite--November 16 -19, 1998
  • Food Code Train the Trainer courses were delivered in 1999 in cooperation with USDA, AFDO, industry (FMI, NRA), and other interested partners. The State Training Team will be delivering more of these courses this year.
  • Interpersonal Communication course via satellite -- Fall 2001.
  • State Training Team courses to be delivered at various sites throughout the country in cooperation with local state sponsors

For more information about these Standards access FDA's website at http://www.fda.gov/ora/ (then click on Federal State Relations, then click on State Training courses), or use a direct web site at State Training Team Courses and Training Materials.

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