Introduction: Student kitchens, if not managed with good hygiene practices, food and kitchen utensils, can provide a favourable environment for the growth and multiplication of pathogenic bacteria, which in turn can lead to various infections or food poisoning. Purpose: The purpose of the assignment was to conduct a hygienic-technical analysis of the dormitory kitchen premises and equipment, a content analysis of the kitchen hygiene regime, and microbiological investigations of the food contact surfaces. In all three sub-areas, the difference between apartment type and common type kitchens was also investigated. Methods: The hygiene inspection included an inspection of floors, walls, ceilings, windows, work surfaces, food contact equipment and utensils, lighting, ventilation, and the food safety triangle. The content analysis of the hygiene regime was related to the cleaning and maintenance of the kitchen. For the microbiological examination of the surfaces, swabs were taken from: Cutting board, kitchen knife, serving plate, cutlery, countertop, refrigerator interior and additionally from the spout of a dishwashing sponge. From the selected surfaces, the total number of aerobic mesophilic microorganisms, the number of Enterobacteriaceae with E. coli, Staphylococcus spp. and Micrococcus spp., Bacillus spp., Enterococcus spp., moulds and yeasts, Salmonella spp. and L. monocytogenes were determined using the colony counting method on solid media. Results: Hygiene and equipment analyses were performed in 27 kitchens and microbiological analyses in 14 kitchens. Floors in the common type kitchens were 90% worn. In the common type kitchens, the only facilities for hand washing were the sinks in the kitchen itself. In contrast to the common type kitchens, the apartment type had hand washing sinks, which were adequately equipped in all cases. The visual cleanliness of the refrigerators interior was inadequate in all cases. Only 30% of the appliances and utensils that come into contact with food in common type kitchens were visually clean. Apartment type kitchens are cleaned once a week by a resident in 58.8% of apartments, while common type kitchens are cleaned by cleaning staff. In both types of kitchens, kitchen utensils are generally cleaned by each person in turn. In 82.4% of apartment kitchens, dishwashing sponges are used by all residents and replaced when they feel they are no longer useful. This also applies to shared kitchens. Waste is removed by the cleaning staff in the communal kitchens and 82,4 % in the apartment kitchens by whoever is on the cleaning rota. E. coli was confirmed in 4,1 % of the swabs taken, Salmonella in 7,1 %, while L. monocytogenes was not confirmed in any of the refrigerators tested. Moulds were confirmed in 40,1 % and yeasts in 73,5 % of the samples taken. The average total aerobic mesophilic microorganism count for all samples was 2,66 log CFU/100 cm2. We found a significant difference in the number of Bacillus bacteria between apartment and shared kitchens on the kitchen knife. Discussion and conclusion: We concluded that students do not pay enough attention to the hygiene of work surfaces, utensils and equipment that come into contact with food, and the hygiene of the refrigerator. In addition, kitchens differed more in terms of meeting the hygiene-technical requirements than in microbiological outcomes. The management and maintenance of hygiene in dormitory kitchens is largely the responsibility of the users and only partially that of the dormitory manager.
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