Standards of hygiene in meal preparation in pre-school institutions in Split

By means of the collection of swabs we investigated the standards of hygiene in the preparation and distribution of meals in pre-school institutions in Split in the period between 1980 and 1998. In order to evaluate hygiene standards, swabs were taken by the random sample mathod from work surfaces, utensils and equipment as well as from the staffs hands. The aim was to establish the level of hygiene on the premises and determine the trend of the number of samples, not in compliance with standards of microbiological purity in the period mentioned. The data point to a marked improvement of hygiene standards with a range of 26.8% inadequate swabs in 1980 to 1.2% in 1998. The improved situation is the result of the continuous cooperation between the Sanitary Inspection, the Institute of Public Health of the Split and Dalmatia County in Split and pre-school institutions, which must be continued.