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Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene: Infectious Diseases, 5 (1), 42-52

The document discusses water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). WASH refers to access to safe water supplies, adequate sanitation facilities, and essential hygiene practices. Lack of WASH leads to diseases like diarrhea, which causes 1.8 million deaths annually. Improving WASH, such as through handwashing with soap, can reduce disease burden. Multiple coordinated WASH interventions are more effective than single interventions. Africa faces challenges in financing and staffing for WASH services.

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49 views1 page

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene: Infectious Diseases, 5 (1), 42-52

The document discusses water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). WASH refers to access to safe water supplies, adequate sanitation facilities, and essential hygiene practices. Lack of WASH leads to diseases like diarrhea, which causes 1.8 million deaths annually. Improving WASH, such as through handwashing with soap, can reduce disease burden. Multiple coordinated WASH interventions are more effective than single interventions. Africa faces challenges in financing and staffing for WASH services.

Uploaded by

realsilverle
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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global health LAUREN E.

SILVER

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene

Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) refers to the extent to which populations have
access to
o safe, improved water supplies (i.e., for drinking and cleaning and preparing
food from such sources as a piped household water connection, a public
standpipe, or a protected dug well, etc.);
1

o improved sanitation (i.e., adequate sewage disposal that prevents contact
between people and human excreta, such as flush/toilet latrine to a piped sewer
system, a septic tank, or a pit latrine; a pit latrine with slab; or a composting
toilet); and
2

o essential inputs for proper personal hygiene (i.e., running water and soap for
hand-washing and bathing).
3

The most common WASH-related diseases include diarrhea (the cause of 1.8 million
deaths per year, 90% of which are among children under 5), arsenicosis (long-term
exposure to low concentrations of arsenic in drinking water), cholera (an acute
bacterial infection of the GI tract), Guinea worm disease and other intestinal worms,
schistosomiasis, and trachoma.
4

Simply washing hands with soap and water can cut diarrhoeal disease by one-third.
5

A hygienic environment, clean water, and adequate sanitation are key factors in
preventing opportunistic infections associated with HIV/AIDS. The spread of malaria
may be prevented by eliminating the standing water that often is associated with
unimproved sanitation (i.e., by reducing the mosquito population).
6

In Africa, there is insufficient domestic financing for WASH, overall, with serious
shortfalls for sanitation, in particular. Most countries in Africa report insufficient staff to
operate and maintain urban and rural drinking water systems. However, the political
will for improving WASH implementation in Africa is growing.
7

Enhancing WASH in Africa in order to reduce the burden of WASH-related diseases will
requirefirst and foremostpromoting hand-washing with soap, enhancing staff
capacities, integrating WASH into health, nutrition, HIV/AIDS education programming,
and promoting household water treatment and safe storage.
8

Evidence suggests that multiple WASH interventions (consisting of combined water,
sanitation, and hygiene measures) are more effective than interventions with a single
focus.
9



1
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/global/assessing.html
2
Ibid.
3
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/hygiene/ldc/index.html
4
unicef: http://www.unicef.org/wash/index_wes_related.html
5
Ibid.
6
Ibid.
7
World Health Organization (WHO):
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/2012/afro_highlight_en.pdf
8
unicef: http://www.unicef.org/esaro/ADVANCING_WASH_IN_AFRICA_FINAL.pdf
9
Fewtrell L, Kaufmann RB, Kay D, Enanoria W, Haller L, Colford JM Jr. (2005). Water, sanitation, and hygiene
interventions to reduce diarrhoea in less developed countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet
Infectious Diseases, 5(1), 42-52.

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