Your Family doctor is required to notify the Consultant in Communicable Disease Control (CCDC) of a number of infectious diseases. These include a range of diseases carried in food such as Salmonella, E.Coli and Campylobacter. The Food Team then works with the CCDC to investigate food borne infections, whether it is an isolated case,  or a suspected outbreak from an event such as a wedding party buffet. The aim is to establish where the patient may have caught the infection and to ensure that they do not pass the infection on to others.

If it is likely that the infection/food poisoning may have arisen from a food business within Waltham Forest the matter will be investigated and could lead to food being seized and a business being closed down or taken to court. If it is thought that the infection/food poisoning was contracted outside the Waltham Forest area the appropriate local authority will be notified.

What to do if you think you have an infectious disease/food poisoning

  • If you have symptoms such as persistent diarrhoea and vomiting, the first step is to consult your doctor. The doctor may ask for a faecal (stool) sample to be submitted for analysis. If a food poisoning organism is found the doctor has a legal duty to inform the CCDC who will then contact you either by letter or telephone to ask a few questions about what you have eaten and where you have been recently.
  • If you are fairly sure of the source of your illness please contact the Food & Safety Team immediately as investigations will need to commence.
  • Refrigerate/freeze any foods suspected of having caused illness. They may be needed for further analysis to determine what caused your illness.
  • As far as possible do not handle or prepare food while you have symptoms.
  • Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and hot water before handling food and always after going to the toilet.

Fact sheets

Fact sheets on common infectious diseases and ways to control them: