Golden Princess sanitation inspection - February 2013

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) inspected the Golden Princess on February 7, 2013. They gave the ship a score of 81. Scores of 85 or lower are deemed unsatisfactory. The CDC inspects ships randomly twice a year on average. On a scale of one to 100, the Golden Princess has never received a score lower than 97 except for a score of 86 in 2008 and the latest inspection of 81. To view the most recent inspection, click here http://wwwn.cdc.gov/InspectionQueryTool/InspectionResults.aspx and then click "Report" for the 2/07/2013 inspection.

That's unacceptable, and I'm shocked that no one mentioned it on here sooner. I see that Princess hasn't had their corrective action report completed yet. I hope all of these issues are rectified immediately!

I was shocked as well when I saw it. The lack of a corrective report six weeks hence bothered me too. Looking on the bright side, perhaps it bodes well for future cruisers on the Golden. It might shock Princess into getting the Golden "ship shape".

Great! We are scheduled on here for the end of May. I just got off the Triumph and was hoping for a wonderful, clean experience... Certainly it will be rectified by then!?

I was on the February 13, 2013 sailing. I did not see anything unusual. From what I could tell, most of the passengers were well (compared to several cruises before and after mine; where there seemed to be more than an average of people sniffling, coughing, etc).

 

I did not frequent the Horizon Court much, except to get Lemonade. There was someone stationed at the entrance making sure that I had used the hand sanitizer. She would not allow me to carry my drink into the buffet line (I had to leave it near her and pick it up later).

 

So sad to hear of these marks.

 

Renee

Yes, some of the violations are disturbing. Especially the one where the food server touched the food with his hand.

Before people get all up in arms about this stuff most of this stuff happens everyday in any resturant you walk in to. I work in the food service industry for a national chain and we get surprise inspections all the time. Most of these inspections depends on what kind of mood the inspector is in and if they want to nit pick or not. Some inspectors will turn a eye to small things and other want to show they are big shots and nail you for everything. My thought after reading this report is that it is not that bad just a few crew training issues that need to be fixed but nothing that wouuld make me feel unsafe to sail.

I was on the February 13, 2013 sailing. I did not see anything unusual. From what I could tell, most of the passengers were well (compared to several cruises before and after mine; where there seemed to be more than an average of people sniffling, coughing, etc).

 

I did not frequent the Horizon Court much, except to get Lemonade. There was someone stationed at the entrance making sure that I had used the hand sanitizer. She would not allow me to carry my drink into the buffet line (I had to leave it near her and pick it up later).

 

So sad to hear of these marks.

 

Renee

 

We were on this same cruise. I saw nothing at all out of line to me. Everything seemed clean and well run, but I wasn't in inspector mode either.

 

I have a feeling almost anywhere there will be violations--even (especially?) our homes. Life is not sterile, but of course standards do need to be kept.

Actually, although there were some minor technical items (like light levelsand some logging), there were a number of significant failures in key areas that are valid concern (like leaks, mislabeled pipes, lack of soap). This report clearly indicated operations are not up to par on that ship right now...

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) inspected the Golden Princess on February 7, 2013. They gave the ship a score of 81. Scores of 85 or lower are deemed unsatisfactory. The CDC inspects ships randomly twice a year on average. On a scale of one to 100, the Golden Princess has never received a score lower than 97 except for a score of 86 in 2008 and the latest inspection of 81. To view the most recent inspection, click here http://wwwn.cdc.gov/InspectionQueryTool/InspectionResults.aspx and then click "Report" for the 2/07/2013 inspection.

 

I'm always amused when people here blindly post "The water on ships is better than what you drink at home". After reading the report, I'm even

more 'amused'. (at the posters, not the water)

Actually, although there were some minor technical items (like light levelsand some logging), there were a number of significant failures in key areas that are valid concern (like leaks, mislabeled pipes, lack of soap). This report clearly indicated operations are not up to par on that ship right now...

I worked most of my life for firms inspected by the FDA and inspectors are not always consistent in their observations. However, some of the items were disturbing. You don't place a plastic bin on top of boxes of food to collect water leaking from overhead, you have the leak fixed immediately. Proper hand washing procedures should be so ingrained in staff that if there is any issues with a soap dispenser, it is reported and fixed immediately.

Honestly it still is in general but that's more of an issue with the quality of some municipal and well water.

 

Most of the water issues noted were fairly technical and non-health impactful at the levels noted.

 

I'm always amused when people here blindly post "The water on ships is better than what you drink at home". After reading the report, I'm even

more 'amused'. (at the posters, not the water)

I was on the Golden Jan 30 through Feb 13. It all looked ok to me :-)

 

I took the UST & seen nothing wrong where we went, We even got to go up to the stacks that hadn't been done in a while before us..

 

Tom

Is there a site to see what other Princess ships scored on their last inspection? Particularly the Crown.

Is there a site to see what other Princess ships scored on their last inspection? Particularly the Crown.

Just follow the link in the the original post. Her most recent inspection was on 4/21/2012 and scored 99.

Is there a site to see what other Princess ships scored on their last inspection? Particularly the Crown.

 

Use the link in the first post and select the ship you are interested in.

 

I just looked at the Ruby which I will be on next month and it shows 14 violations from their inspection in November 2012, but only 1 point deducted for a score of 99. How do they score these violations? I assume if 14 of them only deduct 1 point the ones for the Golden that knocked them down into the low 80s must have been a doozy.

Inspection must have been done in one of the ports of call in Hi. I was also on the ship at that time. Have been on the Golden twice before and never noticed any difference(other than remodeling).

For people who have never been through inspections you would never know that something is wrong. But if you have worked in this area your eye will always spot what is the potential hazard. Have you ever gone into a small store and get coffee? If you look under the area where the filter is most people never clean it after each brew.The same thing goes for the soda fountain.

 

I watch food servers who put fresh food on top the older food in the buffet. That is a violation as well.

Use the link in the first post and select the ship you are interested in.

 

I just looked at the Ruby which I will be on next month and it shows 14 violations from their inspection in November 2012, but only 1 point deducted for a score of 99. How do they score these violations? I assume if 14 of them only deduct 1 point the ones for the Golden that knocked them down into the low 80s must have been a doozy.

We are on the Emerald in June and I checked her latest report. She had 20 items and had a score of 100 while the Golden had 40 items and a score of 81. There must be some sort of sliding severity scale to create a deduction for a given area.

We are on the Emerald in June and I checked her latest report. She had 20 items and had a score of 100 while the Golden had 40 items and a score of 81. There must be some sort of sliding severity scale to create a deduction for a given area.

 

I wish they had the point deduction next to each item like the health department does for restaurants here. That would probably explain a lot.

This is a list of ships that scored below 85

 

Artania Phoenix Reissen Cruise Line 10/9/2012 76

Caribbean Fantasy America Cruise Ferries 1/18/2013 81

Celebrity Summit Celebrity Cruises 1/19/2013 81

Golden Princess Princess Cruises 2/7/2013 81

Grande Caribe Blount Small Ship Adventures 9/28/2012 81

MS Columbus 2 Hapag Lloyd Kreuzfahrten Gmbh 11/15/2012 69

MV Ocean Pearl International Shipping Partners (ISP) 7/14/2008 84

MV Yorktown V. Ships Leisure U.S.A. 9/8/2012 69

Nautilus Explorer Lever Diving 6/24/2007 74

Seadream II Sea Dream Yacht Club 1/20/2013 84

TSS Oceanic Japan Grace 6/26/2009 73

There is. I have seen it before, they do publish the checklist but I can't find it right now.

 

This one will tell you what critical items are (in red). I know critical items count more, not sure how much...

 

http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/operationsmanual/opsmanual2011.pdf

 

We are on the Emerald in June and I checked her latest report. She had 20 items and had a score of 100 while the Golden had 40 items and a score of 81. There must be some sort of sliding severity scale to create a deduction for a given area.

The CDC uses a pretty rigorous and detailed checklist and without their inspections we'd all have less than a stellar experience on board. It's people not doing their jobs and the onus falls on the shoulders of the Head (s) of departments for letting it happen on their watch. It's a pity for all of us who sail that they have to be shamed into doing their job by a failing CDC score....but I imagine that we will see a better score (100% has to be the goal on every ship as they know what the CDC checklist entails) from the Golden on the next surprise visit.

 

I watch a lot of cooking reality shows on TV and some of them, like Restaurant Impossible (Hotel Impossible too) highlight the health hazards and lack of cleanliness/adherence to procedures in the small sampling of food and hospitality businesses they are invited to "fix". Gordon Ramsay started this all off with Kitchen Nightmares in Britain. I am sure we all eat in restaurants where the food is yummy but we might wretch if we saw the hygiene of the kitchen and the staff in it.

 

When it come to cooking and handling food I have yet to see a chef on TV refrain from picking up and plating food with their hands as the server on the Golden was seen to do. I am sure that in every restaurant in the US food hits the plate after having several different hands touch it. Do we all put the lettuce and tomato on our home-grilled burgers with tongs or reach for the "one-use" gloves? Doubtful.

 

I've been in the galleys on 4 Princess ships in a short span of time and was impressed by the order and cleanliness. I didn't have a clipboard and CDC list with me at the time, however. The stakes are high when it comes to winning the confidence of potential passengers and the Golden let the team down on this one. They'll get it right the next time, I hope.

 

Norris

Food safety has come a long way!(I hope)

I was getting Chinese one New Years and while waiting,being tall ,I could see staff wet mopping floor and another mixing a Caesar salad.The bowl fell with the food,he picked it up off the wet floor and kept mixing.I was glad,at least to be getting cooked food.

My friends grandfather told us when working in a vat for making hot dogs years ago,a man used to have to get in the tank with rubber boots to mush it up and chewed tobacco and would spit it into the mixture.

You don't know what you are eating.

Golden Princess - Score 81

Crew members working while ill also helped Golden Princess earn a less than satisfactory score on its February 7 inspection. Among the three reported cases were an assistant buffet steward and a spa massage therapist, who both reported for work after experiencing acute gastroenteritis symptoms. Neither went to the medical center until much later. The report recommended that all employees with AGE symptoms be restricted from work and should report to the medical center as soon as symptoms emerge.

 

This is my favorite violation only because there are so many threads about noro here. Some CC members would rather fall down a flight of stairs possibly hurting themselves or another passenger than hold on to a handrail in fear of getting noro. There was even a thread about not using the pen provided by the staff to sign for your purchase. Now imagine paying for a massage by a therapist who has acute gastroenteritis. I guess you don't have to worry about using the pen to sign for the service since his or her contaminated hands were all over your naked body.