Mobile Food Unit Pre-Opening and Medallion Renewal Inspections

The outcomes were as follows: 1. Reduced time to complete administrative activities for inspections (from 51 minutes to 10 minutes). 2. Reduced time to complete physical inspections (from 15–30 minutes to 15–20 minutes). 3. Reduced the amount of time that MFU operators wait to have inspections completed (from 3.3 hours to 30 minutes). 4. Reduced the number of inspectors dedicated to MFU pre-opening and medallion renewal (from three per day to one per day). 5. Reduced the amount of staff time dedicated to MFU pre-opening and medallion renewal (from 24 hours per day to 8 hours per day). This new process also resulted in an increase in the average number of inspections per hour from 0.78 to 2.45 by the eighth day.

In addition to measuring and surpassing all of the previously mentioned targets, the MFU program began to measure the following indicators to better understand the efficiency of the new process. October 2015 • Total inspections: 77 • Average number of inspections per day: 8.5 • Highest number of inspections in one day: 14 • Number of additional in-field inspections made possible: 46 November 2015 • Total inspections: 72 • Average number of inspections per day: 11.5 • Highest number of inspections in one day: 19 • Number of additional in-field inspections made possible: 2 (low because one inspector resigned) December 2015 • Total inspections: 81 • Average number of inspections per day: 13 • Highest number of inspections in one day: 21 • Number of additional in-field inspections made possible: 92 It is important to note that before the QI project and Kaizen event, the most inspections done on any given day was 12, which were performed by three inspectors. The numbers used above represent inspections done by a single inspector while the other two inspectors were assigned to the field. This accounts for the increase in routine field inspections.

The MFU program reduced waiting times of MFU operators and eliminated unnecessary back-and-forth travel time among the sanitarians. As a result, the team was able to use other non-inspection staff to perform the administrative functions of the process. The QI initiative covered food safety and processing issues by combining many factors to accomplish the same goal. Favorable outcomes on both ends were needed without downgrading the expectations or ordinance requirements. Including staff at all levels to conduct the study enabled participants to step out of their normal roles and see the process from another perspective, which was critical for identifying and addressing root causes. Although involvement and feedback occurred at all levels, trying to sell the revisions to the staff continues to be a work in progress. The team continues to review the detrimental items and resolve them as quickly as possible, and the staff members have made most of the adjustments to the process. Using staff who have been cross-trained to conduct some of the inspection functions (water re-sampling) frees the supervisor to be more attentive to other required duties, such as ensuring that policies and procedures are performed that do not compromise the financial transactions that occur. For sites engaging in similar projects or QI in general, be aware that this initiative is still evolving. The MFU program makes an effort to use the tools learned from the exercise for any problems or obstacles that arise.

Houston Health Department is in the final stages of building a new facility that will house the MFU inspection team and will allow MFU operators to drive their units into the building and park at inspection stations. This will allow the team faster access to the units, improve point-of-use storage capacity, and prevent weather-related delays. Once the new facility is completed, the team will revisit the revised inspection process to ensure that they are making the most efficient use of the new facility.