Professional Practice, Safety and Ethics
Professional Practice, Safety and Ethics
This domain tests safe practice in the kitchen, laboratory and workshop, first aid, food hygiene, and the ethical standards expected of a home economics professional.
Core rules
- Food hygiene: wash hands before handling food; separate raw and cooked foods; cook thoroughly; keep food out of the danger zone (5–60 °C); cover food; use safe water.
- Kitchen safety: carry knives point down and blade away; cut on a board, away from the body; turn pot handles inward; keep electrical cords away from water; smother a fat fire with a lid or fire blanket and never use water.
- Burns: cool under running water for about 20 minutes; do not apply butter, oil or ice.
- Electricity: do not touch switches with wet hands; do not overload sockets.
- Ethics: confidentiality of family information, informed consent before using photographs or case studies, professional boundaries, honesty in labelling and costing, respect for culture and beliefs, and sustainable use of resources.
Worked example
A pan of cooking oil catches fire. Reasoning: water is denser than hot fat, so it sinks, turns to steam and throws burning oil outward - never use water. Turn off the heat if safe, cover the pan with a lid or fire blanket to exclude oxygen, leave it to cool, then move it. If the fire spreads, raise the alarm and evacuate.
Traps
- Water on a fat fire or butter on a burn.
- Washing raw chicken and splashing bacteria around the sink.
- Sharing a client's private details in a lesson example without consent.