Impact of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Interventions on Improving Health Outcomes among School Children
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PURPOSE: This review was done to explore the impact of water treatment, hygiene, and sanitary interventions on improving child health outcomes such as absenteeism, infections, knowledge, attitudes, and practices and adoption of point-of-use water treatment. METHODS: A literature search was conducted using the databases PubMed and Google scholar for studies published between 2009 and 2012 and focusing on the effects of access to safe water, hand washing facilities, and hygiene education among school-age children. Studies included were those that documented the provision of water and sanitation in schools for children less than 18 years of age, interventions which assessed WASH practices, and English-language, full-text peer reviewed papers. RESULTS: Fifteen studies were included in the final analysis. 73% (n = 11) of the studies were conducted in developing countries and were rural based (53%, n = 8). The child's age, gender, grade level, socioeconomic index, access to hygiene and sanitary facilities, and prior knowledge of hygiene practices were significantly associated with the outcomes. Nutrition practices which are key factors associated with the outcomes were rarely assessed. CONCLUSION: Further research is required to assess the long-term impact of such interventions in different settings.
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Evidence assessing the impact of school-based WASH interventions has been mixed.
“However, evidence assessing the impact of school-based WASH interventions has been mixed.”
From Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in Schools in Low-Income Countries: A Review of Evidence of Impact (2019) · cites this paper as [4]
Two previous reviews of studies of the impact of school-based WASH interventions have shown mixed results on outcome measures such as knowledge, attitudes and practices, school attendance, and health.
“Two previous reviews of studies of the impact of school-based WASH interventions have shown mixed results on outcome measures such as knowledge, attitudes and practices, school attendance, and health [2,4].”
From Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in Schools in Low-Income Countries: A Review of Evidence of Impact (2019) · cites this paper as [4]
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References 30 · Cited by 113
Research works printed but not linked: 22
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- Authors
- Joshi, A., & Amadi, C.
- Affiliations
- University of Nebraska Medical Center (US)
- Corresponding author
- Joshi, Ashish
- Venue
- Journal of Environmental and Public Health
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2013
- Volume
- 2013
- Pages
- 1-10
- ISSN
- 1687-9805 (ISSN-L)
- 1687-9813
- PMC
- PMC3888759
- OpenAlex
- W2063349923
- Cited by
- 113
- References
- 30
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 1
- FWCI
- 3.40
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of Environmental and Public Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Child Nutrition and Water Access
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Speech and Hearing › School Health and Nursing Education
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Water Science and Technology › Water Resource Management and Quality
- Keywords
- water, sanitation and hygiene, elementary school students, child health outcomes, school absenteeism, hand washing, hygiene education, household water treatment, safe drinking water, knowledge, attitudes and practices, rural schools, developing countries
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Child, Child Welfare, Developing Countries, Humans, Hygiene, Rural Health, Sanitation, Schools, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Water Purification
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