Operational Guidelines.
Guidelines for the development of educational programmes for MHM, including tips on the topics to address and methods to assess girls’ practices in a respectful way with practical tools
This report presents, for the first time, a global assessment of the extent to which health care facilities provide essential water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services. Drawing on data from 54 low- and middle-income countries, the report conclud
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es that 38% lack access to even rudimentary levels of water, 19% lack sanitation and 35% do not have water and soap for handwashing. When a higher level of service is factored in, the situation deteriorates significantly. A number of areas require urgent action and WHO will work with UNICEF, Governments and other partners to develop a global plan to address the most pressing needs and ensure that all health care facilities have WASH services.
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Fact sheet
Good hygiene is critical to ensure that healthcare staff provide quality care, reduce the spread of infections, and protect the health of communities. This fact sheet explores the healthcare-related risks of poor
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hygiene and the critical elements of hand hygiene needed to improve quality of care and reduce negative outcomes of poor compliance (e.g., healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance) in healthcare facilities, and provides recommendations and additional readings for improving hygiene in health settings and achieving a safe, clean healthcare environment.
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Recommendations of the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee and the HICPAC/SHEA/APIC/IDSA Hand Hygiene Task Force
International Journal for Quality in Health Care, 2018, 30(9), 724–730
Promoting hand hygiene in a neonatal intensive care unit.
Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) are critical in the prevention and care for all of the 17 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) scheduled for intensified control or elimination by 2020.
Provision of safe water, sanitation and
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hygiene is one of the five key interventions within the global NTD roadmap. Yet to date, the WASH component of the strategy has received little attention and the potential to link efforts on WASH and NTDs has been largely untapped.
Focused efforts on WASH are urgently needed if the global NTD roadmap targets are to be met. This is especially needed for NTDs where transmission is most closely linked to poor WASH conditions such as soil-transmitted helminthiasis, schistosomiasis, trachoma and lymphatic filariasis.
This strategy aims to mobilise WASH and NTD actors to work together towards the roadmap targets.
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This document provides a summary of the recommendations for hand hygiene best practices to be performed by health workers providing care and/or support to patients with filovirus infection (Ebola and Marburg viruses).
In many humanitarian emergencies, there is a serious lack of access to even the most basic materials needed for managing the blood in addition to a lack of appropriate sanitation facilities (including water), which are critical for addressing menstrual hy
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giene. Privacy in emergencies is often scarce, and even if toilets are available they often lack locks, functioning doors, lighting and separation between genders. These barriers are often intensified by cultural beliefs and taboos surrounding menstruation which can restrict the movements and behaviors of girls and women
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Results from the baseline study indicated that schoolgirls in the southwestern refugee settlement context lacked access to the menstrual hygiene knowledge and products required for them to manage their menstruation in a healthy and dignified manner.
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Although UNHCR mandates that all women and girls of reproductive age are to receive distributions of disposable sanitary pads, soap and underwear, 71% of the girls reported not having enough menstrual products, 65% reported not having enough soap and 59% reported not having enough underwear. 44% percent also reported that they didn’t have enough information about menstrual hygiene.
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This paper provides a very good understanding of the CHAST approach with its development and tools.
The "Hygiene Awareness Manual" focuses on promoting improved hygiene practices within communities, emphasizing personal and household hygiene, wate
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r safety, and environmental health. It highlights the importance of handwashing, oral hygiene, and maintaining cleanliness of the skin and clothing as key aspects of personal and family hygiene. Specific practices such as regular bathing and wearing clean clothes are also emphasized.
For household hygiene, the manual provides guidance on safe food preparation and storage, as well as keeping living spaces, kitchens, and latrines clean to prevent contamination. It also addresses water safety, emphasizing the need to store water in clean containers, treat it for safe consumption, and dispose of wastewater properly to avoid environmental contamination.
The manual underscores the significance of balanced nutrition and food safety, offering guidelines for cooking and preserving food to reduce health risks. It also delves into disease prevention, explaining the causes and transmission of waterborne and hygiene-related diseases, such as cholera and dysentery, and outlining effective methods to prevent them through proper sanitation and hygiene.
This comprehensive guide serves as a practical resource for community health workers and households, aiming to foster better hygiene practices, prevent diseases, and enhance overall health and well-being.
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A practical handbook covering the architecture, engineering, design and operation of prisons. It is intended for all ICRC delegates working in places of detention, whether they have extensive practical experience or are new to the field.
The Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Improvement Training Package is intended to support the training of local outreach workers and their subsequent work in communities to promote improved water, sanitation and
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hygiene (WASH) practices to reduce diarrhea
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A guide to help you create an Action Plan specific for your health-care facility
This report looks at how the current implications of COVID-19 is exacerbating key challenges for people who menstruate around the world and provides recommendations on how to include menstrual hygiene management (MHM) within a COVID-19 response.
This guidance booklet on Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) is intended for adolescent girls and young women. Issues associated with menstruation are never discussed openly and the silence surrounding menstruation burdens young girls by keeping them
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ignorant of this biological function. Even after the attainment of menarche, very little information is given to young girls about the physiological processes involved and the hygienic practices to be followed.
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Best practice for hand hygiene requires the availability of clean water, soap, and single use disposable towels or alcohol based hand sanitiser with a concentration of 70%. Availability of these resources is not always assured. When resources for ha
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nd hygiene are not available other materials need to be considered to prevent transmission of infection. This document provides community guidance on evidence-based alternative hand hygiene strategies in the absence of clean running water, soap or alcohol-based hand rub.
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