scholarly journals COVID-19 pandemic: Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) as a critical control measure remains a major challenge in low-income countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 191 ◽  
pp. 116793
Author(s):  
Oscar Omondi Donde ◽  
Evans Atoni ◽  
Anastasia Wairimu Muia ◽  
Paul T. Yillia
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Control Measure ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene

scholarly journals Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in Schools in Low-Income Countries: A Review of Evidence of Impact

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celia McMichael
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Library Science ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Publication Date ◽  
Program Fidelity ◽  
School Based ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene ◽  
Hygiene Promotion ◽  
The Impact

Many schools in low-income countries have inadequate access to water facilities, sanitation and hygiene promotion. A systematic review of literature was carried out that aimed to identify and analyse the impact of water, sanitation and hygiene interventions (WASH) in schools in low-income countries. Published peer reviewed literature was systematically screened during March to June 2018 using the databases PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, Science Direct, and Google Scholar. There were no publication date restrictions. Thirty-eight peer reviewed papers were identified that met the inclusion criteria. The papers were analysed in groups, based on four categories of reported outcomes: (i) reduction of diarrhoeal disease and other hygiene-related diseases in school students; (ii) improved WASH knowledge, attitudes and hygiene behaviours among students; (iii) reduced disease burden and improved hygiene behaviours in students’ households and communities; (iv) improved student enrolment and attendance. The typically unmeasured and unreported ‘output’ and/or ‘exposure’ of program fidelity and adherence was also examined. Several studies provide evidence of positive disease-related outcomes among students, yet other assessments did not find statistically significant differences in health or indicated that outcomes are dependent on the nature and context of interventions. Thirteen studies provide evidence of changes in WASH knowledge, attitudes and behaviours, such as hand-washing with soap. Further research is required to understand whether and how school-based WASH interventions might improve hygiene habits and health among wider family and community members. Evidence of the impact of school-based WASH programs in reducing student absence from school was mixed. Ensuring access to safe and sufficient water and sanitation and hygiene promotion in schools has great potential to improve health and education and to contribute to inclusion and equity, yet delivering school-based WASH intervention does not guarantee good outcomes. While further rigorous research will be of value, political will and effective interventions with high program fidelity are also key.

Cambodian girls' recommendations for facilitating menstrual hygiene management in school

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 612-622 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Connolly ◽  
Marni Sommer
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Teaching Methodologies ◽  
Menstrual Hygiene ◽  
Menstrual Hygiene Management ◽  
Hygiene Management ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene

Inadequate school water and sanitation facilities in many low-income countries, including Cambodia, are problematic for pubescent girls as they reach menarche and must subsequently manage monthly menses while attending school. This comparative case study explored girls' own suggestions for improving the pubertal guidance they receive in the classroom, and for modifications of existing school water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities in order to better meet schoolgirls' menstrual hygiene management needs. Key findings included girls' recommendations for teaching methodologies that encourage questions and practical content regarding puberty and menstrual management before the onset of menarche, and WASH-specific recommendations for the increased availability of water and sanitary materials in toilet stalls and greater privacy from boys and other girls. Incorporating girls' recommendations into WASH, health and education related policy and programming in low-income countries would allow girls to comfortably and confidently manage menses within the school environment.

scholarly journals Giardia duodenalis infection in the context of a community-based deworming and water, sanitation and hygiene trial in Timor-Leste

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Y. H. Aw ◽  
Naomi E. Clarke ◽  
James S. McCarthy ◽  
Rebecca J. Traub ◽  
Salvador Amaral ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Giardia Duodenalis ◽  
Community Level ◽  
Trial Registration ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene ◽  
Timor Leste ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Giardiasis is a common diarrhoeal disease caused by the protozoan Giardia duodenalis. It is prevalent in low-income countries in the context of inadequate access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), and is frequently co-endemic with neglected tropical diseases such as soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections. Large-scale periodic deworming programmes are often implemented in these settings; however, there is limited evidence for the impact of regular anthelminthic treatment on G. duodenalis infection. Additionally, few studies have examined the impact of WASH interventions on G. duodenalis. Methods The WASH for WORMS cluster randomised controlled trial was conducted in remote communities in Manufahi municipality, Timor-Leste, between 2012 and 2016. All study communities received four rounds of deworming with albendazole at six-monthly intervals. Half were randomised to additionally receive a community-level WASH intervention following study baseline. We measured G. duodenalis infection in study participants every six months for two years, immediately prior to deworming, as a pre-specified secondary outcome of the trial. WASH access and behaviours were measured using questionnaires. Results There was no significant change in G. duodenalis prevalence in either study arm between baseline and the final study follow-up. We found no additional benefit of the community-level WASH intervention on G. duodenalis infection (relative risk: 1.05, 95% CI: 0.72–1.54). Risk factors for G. duodenalis infection included living in a household with a child under five years of age (adjusted odds ratio, aOR: 1.35, 95% CI: 1.04–1.75), living in a household with more than six people (aOR: 1.32, 95% CI: 1.02–1.72), and sampling during the rainy season (aOR: 1.23, 95% CI: 1.04–1.45). Individuals infected with the hookworm Necator americanus were less likely to have G. duodenalis infection (aOR: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.57–0.88). Conclusions Prevalence of G. duodenalis was not affected by a community WASH intervention or by two years of regular deworming with albendazole. Direct household contacts appear to play a dominant role in driving transmission. We found evidence of antagonistic effects between G. duodenalis and hookworm infection, which warrants further investigation in the context of global deworming efforts. Trial registration Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12614000680662. Registered 27 June 2014, retrospectively registered. https://anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=366540.

scholarly journals Menstrual hygiene in Ugandan schools: an investigation of low-cost sanitary pads

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 50-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tracey Crofts ◽  
Julie Fisher
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Menstrual Hygiene ◽  
Menstrual Hygiene Management ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene ◽  
Sanitary Pads ◽  
Water Provision ◽  
Operation And Management

Menstrual hygiene management (MHM) is a largely overlooked issue in the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector. Every day, millions of menstruating girls and women in low-income countries struggle to find clean water for washing, private places for changing and adequate blood absorbing materials. This study aims to explore the difficulties experienced by schoolgirls in Uganda in managing menstrual hygiene and investigates the extent to which low-cost sanitary pads are part of the solution. Low-cost sanitary pads, either re-usable or disposable, are a timely, simple and innovative means of improving menstrual hygiene and of addressing a broader set of problems related to MHM in schools. Other factors highlighted are: pain relief, education, safe water provision, clean and private latrines, hygienic and secure bathing facilities, use of soap, sealed waste disposal points, private drying places, anal cleansing materials and effective facility operation and management strategies.

scholarly journals Chronic Malnutrition Among Under Five Children of Ethiopia May Not Be Economic. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

1970 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kalkidan Hassen Abate ◽  
Tefera Belachew
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Critical Appraisal ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Child Undernutrition ◽  
Children Nutrition ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene ◽  
Hygiene Factors

Background: Ethiopia is one of the four low income countries in achieving MDG4, however, minimizing child undernutrition became critical undertaking thus far. This review aimed at identifying the predictors of under-5 children nutrition in Ethiopia.Methods: Databases searched were Med Line, HINARY, MedNar and Embase. Furthermore, gray literatures were also sought. All papers selected for inclusion in the review were subjected to a rigorous critical appraisal using standardized critical appraisal instruments from the Joanna Briggs Institute. Quantitative papers were pooled for statistical analysis and narrative synthesis. Odds ratios and their 95% confidence intervals were calculated for analysis. Papers of optimal quality but without optimal data set for meta-analysis were subjected for narrative synthesisResults: Nonadherence towards Optimal feeding recommendations was the most reported predictor of stunting and wasting, while, maternal education and ‘Water, Sanitation and Hygiene’ factors were the second. The findings of the Meta-analysis showed no evidence of association between household income/wealth and stunting of children in Ethiopia (OR=1.14, 95% CI= 0.97, 1.34), heterogeneity test:i2 = 92%, df = 20, (P < 0.00001). On the other hand, children in low income/wealth group were 1.73 times more likely to have wasting compared to children of the higher income/wealth households (OR=1.73, 95% C I= 1.51, 1.97) heterogeneity test: i2 = 71%, df = 20, (P < 0.00001).Conclusion: An over-reliance on macroeconomic growth as a solitary factor towards undernutrition should not be the way forward. Supplementary and more focused nutrition specific and sensitive interventions are needed in Ethiopia.

scholarly journals Exploring the role of environmental enteropathy in malnutrition, infant development and oral vaccine response

2015 ◽  
Vol 370 (1671) ◽  
pp. 20140143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allissia A. Gilmartin ◽  
William A. Petri
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Infant Development ◽  
Intestinal Inflammation ◽  
Oral Vaccine ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Vaccine Response ◽  
Vaccine Failure ◽  
Environmental Enteropathy ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene

Environmental enteropathy (EE) is a poorly defined state of intestinal inflammation without overt diarrhoea that occurs in individuals exposed over time to poor sanitation and hygiene. It is characterized pathologically by small intestine villous blunting and inflammation. In children from low-income countries, it is implicated as a cause of malnutrition, oral vaccine failure and impaired cognitive development. Here we review the search for non-invasive biomarkers to measure EE non-invasively, and assess the current evidence linking EE to malnutrition, vaccine failure and neurocognitive development.

scholarly journals Drinking Water Supply, Sanitation, and Hygiene Promotion Interventions in Two Slum Communities in Central Uganda

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Musoke ◽  
Rawlance Ndejjo ◽  
Abdullah Ali Halage ◽  
Simon Kasasa ◽  
John C. Ssempebwa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Waste Management ◽  
Capacity Building ◽  
Solid Waste ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Solid Waste Management ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Community Interventions ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene

Poor water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) continue to contribute to the high prevalence of diarrhoeal diseases in low-income countries such as Uganda particularly in slums. We implemented a 3-year WASH project in two urban slums in Uganda with a focus on safe drinking water and improvement in sanitation. The project implemented community and school interventions in addition to capacity building initiatives. Community interventions included home improvement campaigns, clean-up exercises, water quality assessment, promotion of drinking safe water through household point-of-use chlorination, promotion of hand washing, and support towards solid waste management. In schools, the project supported health clubs and provided them with “talking compound” messages. The capacity building initiatives undertaken included training of youth and community health workers. Project evaluation revealed several improvements in WASH status of the slums including increase in piped water usage from 38% to 86%, reduction in use of unprotected water sources from 30% to 2%, reduction in indiscriminate disposal of solid waste from 18% to 2%, and increase in satisfaction with solid waste management services from 40% to 92%. Such proactive and sustainable community interventions have the potential to not only improve lives of slum inhabitants in developing countries but also create lasting impact.

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