Oct/Nov 2015 studies on HWTS, CLTS, Handwashing
Dan Campbell
The right to water in the slums of Mumbai, India.
WHO Bull, Nov 2015. Authors: Ramnath Subbaraman & Sharmila L Murthy.
Full text: http://goo.gl/snM1f2
Human rights-based frameworks that emphasize a universal right to water may play a valuable role in overcoming barriers for access to water and thereby help to promote health for marginalized urban populations. This is an important lesson as the global community
endorses the goal of achieving universal and equitable access to water for all.
Effect of a community-led sanitation intervention on child diarrhoea and child growth in rural Mali: a cluster-randomised controlled trial. Lancet Glob Health. 2015 Nov. Authors: Pickering AJ1, Djebbari H2, Lopez C3, Coulibaly M4, Alzua ML3.
Full text: http://goo.gl/t8eKLF
In villages that received a behavioural sanitation intervention with no monetary subsidies, diarrhoeal prevalence remained similar to control villages. However, access to toilets substantially increased and child growth improved, particularly in children <2
years. CLTS might have prevented growth faltering through pathways other than reducing diarrhoea.
Upgrading a Piped Water Supply from Intermittent to Continuous Delivery and Association with Waterborne Illness: A Matched Cohort Study in Urban India.
PLoS Med. 2015 Oct. Authors: Ercumen A1, Arnold BF, 1, Kumpel E2, Burt Z3, Ray I3, Nelson K4, Colford JM Jr1.
Full text: http://goo.gl/2vEuIy
Continuous water supply had no significant overall association with diarrheal disease or ponderal growth in children <5 y old in Hubli-Dharwad; this might be due to point-of-use water contamination from continuing household storage and exposure to diarrheagenic
pathogens through nonwaterborne routes. Continuous supply was associated with lower prevalence of dysentery in children in low-income households and lower typhoid fever incidence, suggesting that intermittently operated piped water systems are a significant
transmission mechanism for Salmonella typhi and dysentery-causing pathogens in this urban population, despite centralized water treatment. Continuous supply was associated with reduced transmission, especially in the poorer higher-risk segments of the population.
Microbiological Effectiveness of Household Water Treatment Technologies under Field Use Conditions in Rural Tanzania.
Trop Med Int Health. 2015 Oct. Authors: Mohamed H1,2, Clasen T3, Njee RM4, Malebo HM5, Mbuligwe S2, Brown J6.
Abstract/order: http://goo.gl/ghPGw8
OBJECTIVES: To assess the microbiological effectiveness of several household water treatment and safe storage (HWTS) options in situ in Tanzania, before consideration for national scale-up of HWTS. CONCLUSIONS: Given that microbiological performance across technologies was comparable, decisions regarding scale-up should be based on other factors, including uptake in the target population and correct, consistent, and sustained use over time. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Development of a Multi-dimensional Scale to Assess Attitudinal Determinants of Sanitation Uptake and Use. Environ Sci Technol. 2015 Oct 23. Authors: Dreibelbis R, Jenkins M, Chase RP, Torondel B, Routray P, Boisson S, Clasen TF, Freeman M.
Abstract/order: http://goo.gl/hj7u86
Low uptake and use of new sanitation technologies in a number of settings has underscored our current limited understanding of the complex attitudinal factors that influence a household's decision to adopt and consistently use new sanitation technologies. Mokken
scaling techniques were applied to series of population-based surveys in Odisha, India between September 2011 and October 2013 (sample sizes 120, 500, 2200). Surveys contained simple, agree/disagree statements about attitudes towards sanitation use and sanitation
technologies. Analysis produced two scales - a 10-question General Scale, reflecting attitudes towards defecation and norms regarding latrine use for all respondents, and a 6-question Experiential Scale, reflecting personal experiences with and perceived convenience
of sanitation technologies targeted at respondents with a latrine. Among all respondents, a one-point change in the General Scale was associated with a 5-percentage point change in the marginal probability of having access to a functioning latrine. Among respondents
with a functional latrine at home, a one-point increase in the General and Experiential Scales were associated with a 4- and 8-percentage point decrease in the probability of engaging in any open defecation in the last seven days, respectively.
Promoting Handwashing Behavior: The Effects of Large-scale Community and School-level Interventions.
Health Econ. 2015 Oct 12. Authors: Galiani S1, Gertler P2, Ajzenman N3, Orsola-Vidal A4.
Abstract: http://goo.gl/SUJDMx
This paper analyzes a randomized experiment that uses novel strategies to promote handwashing with soap at critical points in time in Peru. It evaluates a large-scale comprehensive initiative that involved both community and school activities in addition to
communication campaigns. The analysis indicates that the initiative was successful in reaching the target audience and in increasing the treated population's knowledge about appropriate handwashing behavior. These improvements translated into higher self-reported
and observed handwashing with soap at critical junctures. However, no significant improvements in the health of children under the age of 5 years were observed.