In 1992 Jack in the Box was the fifth largest fast food chain restraint in the United States however, this changed miraculously on January 12, 1993. The book POISONED by Jeff Benedict explains the details of the deadly Escherichia coli (E. coli) strain O157:H7 outbreak that spread throughout four states, affected an estimated 700 people, and responsible for the death of four children. This epidemic was one of the first documented outbreaks of E. coli, and essentially the first time E. coli was publicly associated with ground beef.
The first child to succumb this epidemic was Lauren Rudolph, a six-year-old girl whose symptoms began with an unbearable stomach ache. Her parents rushed her to the San Diego Children’s Hospital when they found blood in her diarrhea. When she arrived at the hospital doctors were unsure of what they were dealing with. As her illness became worse she went into a medically induced coma and later passed away. Dr. Glenn Billman was appointed her autopsy. “In the seven years at Children’s Hospital, he had never seen anything like it” (Keene, 1993) Laurens stomach was filled with blood and bacteria that normally lived in a cow’s intestine. Billman found that Lauren had died from Hemolytic-uremic …show more content…
coli O157:H7 was first recognized only eleven years prior in 1982, therefore the pathogen was still not widely understood. Bob Nugent, President and Chief Officer of Jack in the Box was an example of how uninformed the population was about E. coli. He himself was unfamiliar with E. coli and the effects it has on individuals who consume contaminated products. When he first heard about the outbreak he couldn’t quite understand how what he thought was just simple food poisoning could cause death. With Nugent being unaware of the severity of E. coli he tried to lay blame on Ken Dunkley. Dunkley was the Vice President of quality assurance for Jack in the Box. Nugent felt it was Dunkley’s responsibility to ensure all food was safe and of good
The first child to succumb this epidemic was Lauren Rudolph, a six-year-old girl whose symptoms began with an unbearable stomach ache. Her parents rushed her to the San Diego Children’s Hospital when they found blood in her diarrhea. When she arrived at the hospital doctors were unsure of what they were dealing with. As her illness became worse she went into a medically induced coma and later passed away. Dr. Glenn Billman was appointed her autopsy. “In the seven years at Children’s Hospital, he had never seen anything like it” (Keene, 1993) Laurens stomach was filled with blood and bacteria that normally lived in a cow’s intestine. Billman found that Lauren had died from Hemolytic-uremic …show more content…
coli O157:H7 was first recognized only eleven years prior in 1982, therefore the pathogen was still not widely understood. Bob Nugent, President and Chief Officer of Jack in the Box was an example of how uninformed the population was about E. coli. He himself was unfamiliar with E. coli and the effects it has on individuals who consume contaminated products. When he first heard about the outbreak he couldn’t quite understand how what he thought was just simple food poisoning could cause death. With Nugent being unaware of the severity of E. coli he tried to lay blame on Ken Dunkley. Dunkley was the Vice President of quality assurance for Jack in the Box. Nugent felt it was Dunkley’s responsibility to ensure all food was safe and of good