Final answer:
Management should notify the health department if they suspect a foodborne illness outbreak was caused by a sick staff member. This is essential for a proper investigation and to control the outbreak. Ignoring the issue or only conducting an internal investigation is not sufficient.
Step-by-step explanation:
When management suspects that a foodborne-illness outbreak was caused by a sick staff member, the appropriate course of action is to notify the health department. This is crucial to ensure a proper public health response, including the investigation and control of the outbreak to prevent further cases. Disclosing the employee's identity is not initially necessary and could breach privacy laws. An internal investigation may be part of the process, but it should not replace the notification and involvement of public health authorities. Ignoring the suspicion is irresponsible and can lead to a wider spread of the illness.
Additionally, management should take immediate action to prevent further spread by following established protocols such as ensuring ill staff do not handle food, cleaning and sanitizing the affected areas, and cooperating with health officials to identify and mitigate the source of the outbreak. This might include providing data for a case-control study or handing over relevant records to the health officials for further analysis.