Cook - Dietary Aide HCC

PruittHealth•Stockbridge, GA

About The Position

The Cook prepares palatable, nutritionally sound meals in accordance with departmental policies and procedures and applicable state and federal laws and regulations. Meals must meet residents’ daily nutritional and special-diet needs, and be prepared and served at the proper temperature and time. The Cook works with the Director of Food Service to use resources efficiently so residents receive food in appropriate amounts, types, consistencies, and frequency to support body weight, nutritional needs, and quality of life. The role also assists with food preparation and meal service, follows diet and NPO orders, accommodates resident preferences and special diets, and maintains food, equipment, and work areas in a clean and sanitary condition. The Cook follows recipes and menu cycles, observes food-handling and storage requirements, monitors residents’ acceptance of menu items, and reports findings or operational concerns to the Dietary Manager. The position may assist with supervising kitchen staff and performs other related duties as directed by a supervisor.

Requirements

Sufficient education to demonstrate functional literacy.
At least one year of institutional food-service experience as a cook.
Working knowledge of food handling, preparation, and storage techniques that comply with state and federal laws and regulations.
Ability to apply applicable food-service regulations to cooking duties and supervision of staff assistants.
Ability to follow standardized recipes and established food-service, safety, infection-control, and equipment procedures.
Knowledge of facility emergency and disaster procedures and ability to understand and respond to written or oral emergency instructions.
Ability to arrive and begin work on time and report for scheduled duty on all shifts, weekends, and holidays.
Ability to use personal protective equipment when indicated and handle hazardous materials according to facility procedures.
Demonstrate honesty and integrity in the care and use of resident and facility property, and respect residents’ rights, dignity, and individuality.

Nice To Haves

Experience in long-term-care food production.

Responsibilities

Assist with preparing meals, salads, desserts, snacks, between-meal nourishments, and other dishes.
Follow diet orders and NPO diet orders; serve nourishments according to procedural guidelines.
Store leftovers and opened food properly and follow procedures for serving partner meals.
Offer menu substitutions and record them according to procedural guidelines.
Comply with infection-control policies and deliver trays to residents in halls and dining areas.
Assist with serving beverages and prepare coffee or tea as requested.
Clean dining tables after meals and clean work areas at the end of shifts and after meals, including sweeping and mopping.
Clean kitchen equipment, including carts, tables, counters, ice machines, blenders, mixers, meat slicers, refrigeration equipment, stoves, steamers, dish machines, and related equipment.
Remove garbage from kitchen areas and hose out garbage containers.
Scrape, wash, and properly store dishes, pots, and pans.
Record freezer and walk-in refrigerator temperatures according to established procedures.
Maintain the dishwasher and dish sink; check and record water temperatures, use sanitizer strips, and monitor and replace chemical supplies as needed.
Maintain supply stock and store items according to established procedures.
Set up the tray line and perform tray-line service.
Operate dish machines, garbage disposals, mixers, blenders, meat slicers, steamers, and coffee and tea makers.
Use, clean, and maintain serving equipment according to established procedures.
Follow recipes and menu cycles to prepare attractive, palatable, nutritionally adequate meals in institutional quantities and serve them at appropriate times.
Assist with supervising kitchen staff involved in food preparation, tray assembly, cleaning, and storage of supplies and equipment.
Continuously clean food-service work areas during food preparation and service, and use supplies and equipment efficiently to prevent waste.
Prepare and maintain food substitutes for residents’ choices and cultural, ethnic, and religious preferences.
Inspect trays after meal service, monitor and record residents’ acceptance of menu items, and report findings to the Dietary Manager.
Use food-preparation equipment according to manufacturer instructions and follow cleaning and preventative-maintenance schedules.
Handle, store, and dispose of food supplies and prepared food according to department procedures and applicable regulations.
Participate in center or agency surveys and required follow-up reports; attend survey training and assist with preparation for state inspections.
Attend continuing-education programs and mandatory in-services as required.
Respect residents’ rights, dignity, individuality, privacy, property, and civil rights, and comply with the corporate compliance program.
Report occupational hazards, injuries, safety concerns, and food-service or maintenance problems to the supervisor or Dietary Manager as appropriate.
Follow facility safety, fire-prevention, infection-control, universal-precaution, personal-protective-equipment, and hazardous-material procedures.
Know facility emergency and disaster procedures, including how to locate the nearest exit and respond to emergency instructions.
Communicate with the Dietary Manager as needed to meet residents’ needs and perform other related duties as directed by the supervisor.