141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

284847
Dont wash your chicken! - development of novel food safety education materials to address a common unsafe food handling practice

Monday, November 4, 2013

Shauna Henley , Department of Nutrition Sciences, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA
Jennifer J. Quinlan, PhD , Dept. of Nutrition Sciences, College of Nursing and Health Professions, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA
INTRODUCTION: Research in our laboratory using multicultural focus groups (N=9) and surveys (N=428) identified washing raw poultry as an unsafe food handling practice commonly reported by consumers of all races/ethnicities. There are currently no education materials addressing this unsafe practice. The research described here developed an education campaign and materials instructing consumers not to wash raw poultry. METHODS: Photonovelas are small comic-book like pamphlets with pictures instead of illustrations that convey a message through a short “drama”. Four photonovelas were developed to inform consumers that raw poultry should not be washed and why. Actors performed the short dramas and videos were recorded to be available through an educational website. Pictures were taken of the actors during performances for development of photonovela print materials. RESULTS: Four photonovelas and corresponding videos were created. Photonovelas shared the theme of not washing chicken, but varied in the race/ethnicity of the actors and recipes they prepared (lemon baked whole chicken, stir fry chicken, oven baked chicken and chicken molé). This was to develop a multicultural set of educational materials, as well as convey the message not to wash chicken with multiple cuts of raw poultry. The photonovelas were printed as 8.5”x 6” colored pamphlets. Photonovelas also provided consumers with the website address where they could go to learn more about this topic. DISCUSSION: Availability of education materials instructing consumers not to wash raw poultry should reduce the incidence of this practice. The efficacy of these materials will be piloted in a community-based campaign.

Learning Areas:
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Public health biology

Learning Objectives:
Discuss the prevalence and problem of consumers washing raw poultry. Describe the appropriate way to eliminate bacteria from raw poultry. Evaluate the education materials developed to discourage consumers from washing raw poultry.

Keywords: Food Safety, Community Research

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a doctoral candidate in the Department of Biology conducting my Ph.D. dissertation in the area of food microbiology and I have been directly responsible for the research being presented in this abstract.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.