Clarifying the case of 38 students suspected of food poisoning in Ho Chi Minh City

On March 28, the Department of Food Safety (Ministry of Health) issued a document directing the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Food Safety to urgently investigate, handle and trace the origin of food related to the case of 38 students of Tue Duc School - Ho Chi Minh City having stomachaches and nausea after lunch.

The Food Safety Department received information about a suspected food poisoning incident occurring at Tue Duc Primary-Middle School (campus 1/5 Bis Luong Dinh Cua, An Khanh ward, Thu Duc city) and Tue Duc Primary-Middle School (campus 644 Nguyen Thi Dinh, Thanh My Loi ward, Thu Duc city), in which more than 30 students showed symptoms of abdominal pain, diarrhea, and nausea after eating school meals provided by the same company in Tan Phu district; the suspected poisoning incident occurred on the same day and involved the same groups of food suspected of causing poisoning.

Faced with the above situation, the Food Safety Department issued Official Dispatch No. 566/ATTP-NDTT requesting the Ho Chi Minh City Food Safety Department to organize an investigation and trace the origin of food to clearly identify the source of raw materials and food for processing facilities suspected of causing poisoning; take food samples and specimens for testing to find the cause.

Authorities shall temporarily suspend the operation of meal processing establishments suspected of causing food poisoning if they detect a risk of further food poisoning; strictly handle violations of food safety regulations (if any) and publicize the results to promptly warn the community; Strengthen management measures, especially in collective kitchens and meal supply establishments to limit the risk of food poisoning.

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Food Safety needs to strengthen propaganda and guide collective kitchens and food service establishments to strictly control the origin and source of food ingredients, ensure hygiene throughout the process of preliminary processing, processing, and transportation of food, food safety conditions, three-step food inspection, and food sample storage.

According to the school report, on the morning of March 26, the homeroom teacher of class 1P6 received information from the parents of two students who showed symptoms of nausea and diarrhea, were taken to the hospital and diagnosed with suspected food poisoning. After breakfast that same day, the school recorded two more students with similar symptoms. One student was diagnosed with food poisoning by the doctor, the other student had a stomachache since the evening of March 25.

At noon the same day, the Board of Directors held an urgent meeting with relevant departments and compiled a list of 38 students showing signs of suspected poisoning, including 5 cases of physiological abdominal pain.

The school has taken food samples and sent them to the Pasteur Institute in Ho Chi Minh City for testing, and has also notified parents to coordinate in monitoring students' health./.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/lam-ro-vu-38-hoc-sinh-nghi-ngo-bi-ngo-doc-thuc-pham-o-tp-ho-chi-minh-post1023315.vnp