A health inspection report of O’Donovan Hall conducted in October after the norovirus outbreak yielded four critical and three non-critical health violations – the highest number for any one year since 2003 for which statistics were provided.

The District of Columbia Department of Health Bureau of Community Hygiene completes annual inspections of the university dining hall, which includes facility assessments and offering guidelines on what it needs to improve in terms of cleanliness and food preparation.

According to Andrew Lindquist, executive director of campus dining services for ARAMARK Higher Education, which manages campus dining, inspections can come unexpectedly.

“We do not receive any notification as to when they will arrive or how often they will inspect a facility,” he said. “Our top priority is to ensure that the food we serve is of the highest quality within the safest environment possible.”

ARAMARK began catering on-campus dining on July 1, 2007, taking over for the Marriott Corporation, which had managed dining services since 1975. In the past four years, inspection records reveal that a few “demerits” were issued – most for violations such as inadequate cleaning of food-contact surfaces and failure to remove condensation from ventilation shafts.

In 2003, the dining hall was instructed to complete repairs on the ceiling and the ventilation shafts, as well as to better maintain the no food-contact surfaces.

In 2004, three demerits were issued for improper cleaning of floors and no food-contact surfaces, as well as general maintenance of the premises.

The year after, the dining hall was told to better sanitize their food-contact and no food-contact surfaces, receiving two demerits.

The DOH did not provide The Hoya with statistics from 2006.

A student reported to the D.C. Department of Health in March 2007 that he had fallen ill immediately after eating at the dining hall and believed there to be a connection. After a DOH investigation, though, “no correlation between illness and establishment” could be found.

Later in March, the dining facility passed its yearly inspection with no major violations and only “non-critical” violations, which were corrected on site. No demerits were issued.

arriott officials could not be reached for comment about specific code violations.

O’Donovan Hall’s license was renewed in the June 2008 inspection, the first with ARAMARK as the campus food provider. One violation was found – a lack of hand cleanser in the public bathrooms. Six violations can close a facility or lead to court proceedings against the facility, according to the inspection reports.

Lindquist declined to comment on specific violations, but he said that ARAMARK does conduct its own internal inspections periodically. Every time the facility received demerits, he said, the dining hall conformed to the recommendations issued by the DOH, but was never shut down as a result of them.

When the norovirus outbreak first hit campus on the night of Sept. 30, the university closed O’Donovan Hall as a precaution even before the Bureau of Community Hygiene first arrived on the scene. However, thorough inspection of the facility yielded seven different violations, four labeled as “critical” and three as “non-critical.” The critical violations included poor hand-washing facilities, failure to have food-contact surfaces properly cleaned and sanitized, improperly stored toxic substances – which was corrected on site – and a failure to follow proper date-marking procedures.

A number of expired food items were also found in a kitchen refrigerator, according to the report, including artichoke lemon dip, spinach dip and an unidentified white sauce. The dining hall was ordered to discard the expired food items, the report states.

In addition, the investigating team noticed excessive mold and fungus on the interior of the main kitchen ice machines.

Due to the outbreak, the dining hall thoroughly cleaned the dining hall and the kitchen before it was reopened for dinner on Oct. 2, Lindquist said, a decision made with DOH approval.

“We take reports of alleged food-related illness very seriously. In most cases, alleged food-related illnesses are found to be viral, but the symptoms are often very similar to those associated with food-related illnesses,” Lindquist said.

In the case of the norovirus outbreak, he said the university utilized its Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point Plan, which uses comprehensive risk-reduction measures to make sure that any possible illness is not linked to dining hall food.

“Whenever these situations arise, the on-site team vigorously reviews procedures to ensure that everything was done properly according to the HACCP plan,” Lindquist said.

In mid-October, Georgetown chose to indefinitely cancel its contract with Organic To Go in light of the investigation into the norovirus outbreak, instead agreeing with DOH to prepare its own Grab `n’ Go items.

The health department was ultimately unable to determine the origin of the norovirus outbreak at the conclusion of its investigation, finding that it was a possible combination of person-to-person contact, contaminated food or contaminated surfaces. While the DOH report did note a higher correlation between those who became sick and Grab `n’ Go consumption, the investigation into the point of origin remained inconclusive.

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