Abstract The purpose of this study was to evaluate intervention strategies for the reduction of microbiological contamination on the hands of food handlers. The study was conducted from January 2009 to December 2014 at a food and nutrition company in Curitiba, Brazil. Samples from the hands of 877 handlers were collected for microbiological analysis. The intervention strategies applied during each year were: 2009, substitute the use of odorless liquid soap and an antiseptic product by one product; 2010, was increasing the staff of technical supervisors and conducting biannual training; 2011 was to move the lavatories for handwashing, and the use of 70% alcohol gel; 2012, was to increase the frequency of the training of food handlers; 2013, was new weekly monitoring, to evaluation of the use of bactericide soap; 2013 and 2014 was implemented an internal program to verify food production. The intervention introduced in 2011 the 2012 and 2013 the 2014 reduced the contamination of the hands of food handlers. The use of 70% alcohol gel, the moving of the location of the lavatories, weekly monitoring of the use of bactericide soap and implementation of the internal program, were the strategies that contributed the most to the reduction of the microbial.

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate the hygienic-sanitary conditions of hospital nutrition services according to internal and external auditors, before and after intervention, based on the requirements of Good Hygiene Practices. Fifteen hospital nutrition services were evaluated based on a checklist applied by internal auditors and by an external auditor. The intervention program was prepared and implemented in all the locations over one year, and was composed of four points: 1) training; 2) preparation of the action plan; 3) preparation of the documentation; 4) monthly visits to motivate the food handlers and responsible technicians, accompaniment and assistance in the implementation of Good Hygiene Practices. An improvment in the application of Good Hygiene Practices was observed in the hospital nutrition services after the systematic intervention, in the view of both the internal and external auditors, except the requirement related to operational aspects, which had a low percentage of adequacy, both before and after the intervention Before the intervention, there was a significant difference between the evaluation of the internal auditors and the external auditor, which was not found later. These results suggest that the systematic intervention assisted in the adoption of Good Hygiene Practices by hospital nutrition services, according to both the internal and external auditors, and contributed to increasing the knowledge of the internal auditors.