Prepared By:
Phil Wong, Manager, Environmental Health Department
Date:
January 23, 2019
Subject:
Disclosure Requirement UPDATE
Background
Since 2009, the Safe Food Counts disclosure program has provided the public access to online inspection reports for all food premises in the City of Windsor and Essex County. In addition to online reports, signage called Star Signs were distributed and displayed on site to direct the public to safefoodcounts.ca for further details on reports. Although all food premises inspected received Star Signs during each compliance inspection, not every municipality had by-laws in place to require posting.
In 2018, amendments were made to regulations under the Health Protection and Promotion Act, which made disclosure signage mandatory for a number of inspected facilities such as food premises, personal service settings and recreational water facilities. Public Health Inspectors enforce the new requirements across the province of Ontario. Furthermore, amendments made in 2018 to the Ontario Public Health Standards: Requirements for Programs, Services, and Accountability 2018 (OPHS) made it mandatory for local boards of health to have online disclosure of inspection reports and enforcement activity for the following provincial protocols:
- Food Safety Protocol, 2018;
- Health Hazard Response Protocol, 2018;
- Infection Prevention and Control Complaint Protocol, 2018;
- Infection Prevention and Control Disclosure Protocol, 2018;
- Infection Prevention and Control Protocol, 2018;
- Recreational Water Protocol, 2018;
- Safe Drinking Water and Fluoride Monitoring Protocol, 2018;
- Tanning Beds Protocol, 2018;
- Tobacco Protocol, 2018;
- Electronic Cigarettes Protocol, 2018.
Current Initiatives
In February 2019, the Windsor Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) will be launching the new disclosure website www.wechu.org/inspections. The new website will replace the Safe Food Counts website and contain inspection reports and enforcement activity for a variety of inspected facilities. Some of these include but are not limited to,
- Food Premises (restaurants, take-out, fast food, cafeterias, bakeries etc.)
- Personal Service Settings (ex. tanning, hair, tattoo and nail salons etc.)
- Licensed Child Care Centres
- Public Pools, Spas and Splash Pads
- Campgrounds
- Small Drinking Water Systems
- Legal Activity (ex. orders, closures, tickets and advisories)
The Environmental Health Department will continue to disclose the following on the WECHU website:
- Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) Lapses in clinics, non-regulated and personal service settings;
- Outbreaks in Long-term Care Homes and Nursing Homes;
- Interactive Public Beach Map and Water Results;
- Food and Product Recalls;
- Extreme Weather Alerts.
The online disclosure program promotes transparency of inspection reports and allows the public to make informed decisions when visiting inspected facilities in the City of Windsor and Essex County.
Approved by:
Theresa Marentette, CEO