Shell Rock Senior Living: Kitchen Safety Failures - IA
When inspectors interviewed the cook, identified as Staff D, he said he didn't need tongs as long as he was wearing gloves. He confirmed he had no idea that touching other surfaces first had contaminated them.
The Director of Nursing said she didn't know why Staff D was wearing gloves at all during the September 3 noon meal service, describing gloves as outside his normal routine. The administrator offered her own theory: he was nervous because inspectors were present.
The dietary manager overseeing the kitchen wore a baseball cap with no hairnet on both days inspectors visited, her hair visibly extending more than an inch below the cap. On September 3, she used a gloved finger to scrape cool whip off a spatula and onto desserts being prepared for residents. The administrator said she would have expected a hairnet.
The handwashing sink had a dark brown discoloration around the drain, roughly six inches by six inches, when inspectors arrived on September 2. It was still there the following morning. The convection oven had brown sticky buildup on the inside and outside of its doors, throughout the interior, and across the metal racks. That hadn't changed either.
The infection preventionist told inspectors she hadn't completed any audits of kitchen practices.
Shell Rock Senior Living had 34 residents at the time of the inspection.
Full Inspection Report
The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for Shell Rock Senior Living from 2025-09-04 including all violations, facility responses, and corrective action plans.
Download the official CMS inspection PDF from Medicare.gov
Additional Resources
Data source: This article is based on inspection data downloaded directly from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) via Medicare.gov. CMS releases inspection reports in bulk; we publish the findings as documented by state surveyors in the official Form CMS-2567 Statement of Deficiencies.
Plan of correction: The CMS report we receive does not include the facility's plan of correction. Facilities submit plans of correction separately to state survey agencies and those responses may not be reflected in CMS data at the time of publication. The absence of a plan of correction in our data does not mean one was not filed. Readers who want information about corrective steps taken are encouraged to contact the facility directly or their state survey agency.
Corrections may have occurred: Inspection reports reflect conditions observed on the date of the survey. Facilities may have implemented corrections, staffing changes, additional training, or other remediation since the report was issued. We report what CMS provides and encourage readers to seek current information from the facility.
Editorial process: Inspection findings are extracted from CMS source documents and synthesized using AI, reviewed for factual accuracy against the original report by our editorial team.
Professional review: All content reviewed by Christopher F. Nesbitt, Sr., NH EMT & BU-trained Paralegal.
Last verified: September 22, 2026 · Our methodology
Shell Rock Senior Living in Shell Rock, IA was cited for violations during a health inspection on September 4, 2025.
When inspectors interviewed the cook, identified as Staff D, he said he didn't need tongs as long as he was wearing gloves.
Health inspections identify deficiencies that facilities must correct. Violations range from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns. Review the full report below for specific details and facility response.