BACKGROUND: Students in school are more likely to be sick from communicable diseases like diarrheal illnesses, acute respiratory infections, and other illnesses linked to poor personal hygiene. Poor hygiene practices are common among school children and put their health at risk, which in turn has several consequences. These include significant school absences, transmission of infectious diseases to other students, and missed workdays for parents and guardians. However, there is limited evidence on the level of personal hygiene practice and its associated factors among school students. Thus, this study was aimed at determining personal hygiene practice level and its associated factors among elementary school grade (5-8) students in Fiche town, Oromia, Ethiopia, in 2022.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study design was conducted from April 29 to May 29, 2022, in Fiche town, Oromia regional state, among 534 elementary school students. A multi-stage probability sampling technique was used to select the individual students. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. The data was entered into epi-data version 4.6 and analyzed by SPSS version 26.0. Variables that scored a p-value less than 0.2 during bivariate analysis were included in multilevel logistic regression models to determine factors associated with personal hygiene practice. The odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval was estimated, and the level of significance was set at [Formula: see text] 0.05.
RESULTS: The magnitude of good personal hygiene (scored above the mean) was 59.2% (95% confidence interval (CI)) (55.1-63.0). A considerable proportion of students scored more than 50% in latrine use (62.5%), regular hand-washing (55.4%), and oral hygiene (55.20%) practices. Being female, having good personal hygiene knowledge, doing hygiene inspections at school, and having latrine accessibility was significantly associated with good personal hygiene among elementary school students.
CONCLUSIONS: Considerable proportion of elementary school students in Fiche town have score poor personal hygiene practice. Interventions aimed that target improving knowledge of personal hygiene and hygiene inspection at school are crucial to enhance the personal hygiene among elementary school students.

UNASSIGNED: Hand washing instructions for children have been implemented in school education to establish good lifestyle habits. However, repeated hand washing through education from early childhood was common for both teachers and children. If this continues, children might assume they already know how to wash their hands, stop taking handwashing instructions seriously, and become increasingly lax about washing their hands.
UNASSIGNED: This study aimed to develop a new handwashing education method for children.
UNASSIGNED: We applied the adenosine triphosphate (ATP) test to health education on hand washing in elementary schools. This study was conducted as part of a class for elementary school students in October 2023, in Hokkaido, Japan. The subjects were 157 third-grade (9-10 years old) elementary school students. After excluding absent pupils, 147 were included in the analysis.
UNASSIGNED: Both pre- and post-education, ATP values after handwashing were lower than those before handwashing. Following the education, children\'s handwashing behavior improved, with an increase in the number of point washed and appropriate timing of handwashing.
UNASSIGNED: The new handwashing education program utilizing the ATP-test succeeded in promoting handwashing behavior among many children. Visualizing handwashing using ATP values was effective in motivating children.

Food safety remains a critical issue with outbreaks of foodborne illness. The knowledge gap of food safety and improper hygienic practices of food handlers are the key factors for the transmission of foodborne diseases. This study was conducted to investigate the level of food safety knowledge and practices among street food vendors in Dhaka City, Bangladesh, and its implications on consumers\' health. This cross-sectional study was conducted among 350 respondents in seven areas of Dhaka City. Trained data collectors gather data by interviewing street vendors using a pretested questionnaire. Most of the vendors (98%) were male, with 48% having secondary education and 85% having no food safety training. Although about 89% of the vendors were found to practice hand washing, only a small proportion of them practised using hand gloves while handling raw products (5.6%), cleaning tables (2.2%), preparing foods (1.3%) or handling garbage (0.9%). The education level of the vendors and their work experience were significantly correlated with their hand washing practice, wearing hand gloves and their knowledge about food-borne illnesses. The study demonstrated that formal education played a significant role in vendors\' knowledge and practice of health safety measures for food handlers to prevent foodborne illness. Effective food safety training and monitoring are needed to increase vendors\' knowledge and practices, and in reducing foodborne diseases.

There are a few existing gaps and paucity of literature from Southeast Asia on the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among migrant construction workers. The present cross-sectional study was conducted to address this gap among migrant construction workers and their households in Bhopal. The study design included an interview questionnaire survey prior to the enrollment of participants and stool sample collection. The stool samples were processed according to the study protocol of macroscopy, occult blood testing, microscopy techniques combined with modified acid-fast, and sedimentation techniques. Participants were deemed positive if they exhibited microscopic findings in one out of three stool samples per recruit. We recommended clinical consultation for these cases and provided a report. Direct therapeutic intervention was not part of the study. The total recruits were 361. The predominant age group was young, i.e., aged 21 to 30 years (122/361, 33.8%), with the majority of females (55.2%). Most workers were occupied with work of digging soil (47.4%). The majority of participants (93.1%) practiced open field defecation (OFD). The prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among migrant workers and households was 36.9% (133/361). Monoinfection was 88.7%, with 41% from Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar. Monoinfection with Hymenolepis nana (10.2%) was a predominant helminth. The most common coinfection observed was of Giardia intestinalis with Ancylostoma duodenale (26.7%). Hand washing was the only independent predictor with an odds ratio of 3.6. Migrant behavior of the construction workers and their households was the major reason for not reaching the benefits of deworming schemes for children and vulnerability to intestinal parasitic infections.

A field study was conducted to examine the effect of interventions to increase hand-hygiene behavior of university students. Student patrons of a university cafeteria were observed during lunch. Across several phases, researchers observed and recorded the number of students (a) entering the restroom to wash hands and (b) using a hand-sanitizer gel. Interventions included an informational poster, hand-sanitizer dispenser, and change agent to increase hand-hygiene behavior. Results showed that the presence of a strategically placed hand-sanitizer dispenser was effective in increasing hand-hygiene behavior from 1.52% to over 60% (average n = 208 students per day). Participants were particularly responsive to the hand-sanitizer dispenser when combined with a change agent. Meanwhile, the tested interventions were ineffective in increasing the number of students entering a restroom to hand wash. The results are discussed regarding response cost and socially-mediated consequences of change agents.

BACKGROUND: Practicing hand hygiene is recommended as one of the key preventive measures for reducing the transmission of COVID-19 and other infectious agents. However, it is often not practiced frequently enough or correctly by the public. We aimed to identify barriers to and facilitators of hand hygiene in the Zimbabwean population during the COVID-19 pandemic.
METHODS: A qualitative study was conducted with a purposive sample of health workers, village health workers, church leaders, traditional healers, teachers, youth leaders and the general population selected from ten districts across the country from September to October 2022. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 3 key informant interviews per site. In addition, one homogenous focus group discussion was also conducted per site using a focus group discussion guide. The data were recorded on audiotapes, transcribed verbatim, and translated into English. All the analyses were performed manually using thematic analysis.
RESULTS: Two themes were identified as facilitators of hand hygiene. These include individual factors (knowledge of hand hygiene practices and how they are performed) and access-related factors (access to hand washing infrastructure, soap, and sanitizers). Among the barriers to hand hygiene, four themes were identified: individual factors (knowledge gaps in proper hand washing, lack of conviction about hand hygiene, and habitual behaviour), access-related factors (lack of access to hand washing infrastructure, soap, and sanitizers), safety concerns (concern about the side effects of sanitizers), and sociocultural and religious factors (social customs, cultural beliefs, values, and religious practices).
CONCLUSIONS: During public health emergencies, there is a need for people to access uninterrupted, on-premises water supplies to promote compliance with hand hygiene. The provision of clean water and hand washing facilities is critical for vulnerable communities to afford them the opportunity to improve quality of life and facilitate resilience in the event of future pandemics. Community engagement is important for identifying vulnerability factors to provide appropriate mitigatory measures.

BACKGROUND: Nurses are essential members of the healthcare workforce and were among the first-line carers for patients in community and hospital settings during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, they were at a heightened risk of infection, resulting in several reported deaths among nursing staff. Several preventive measures were adopted to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus. This study aims to explore the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of nurses regarding hand hygiene, mask wearing, and social distancing measures in healthcare settings in Barbados during the COVID-19 pandemic.
METHODS: An online survey of nurses working in public hospitals and polyclinics (public primary care clinics) in Barbados from March 2021 to December 2021 was conducted. A nonsystematic convenience sampling method was employed to recruit nurses who were readily available and willing to participate. A questionnaire captured the sociodemographic information and knowledge and practices related to hand hygiene, the use of face masks, and social distancing. Each correct response received one mark. Overall knowledge scores were categorized as poor (<60%), average (60-80%), or good (>80-100%).
RESULTS: Of the 192 participants, the majority were female (82.8%) and had >5 years of experience (82%). The findings revealed that 45.8% had poor knowledge of hand hygiene, and that the knowledge of 43.8% of respondents was average. Multivariable logistic regression showed that, after adjustment for age and gender, registered nurses had 2.1 times increased odds (95% confidence interval 1.0, 4.2) of having good knowledge compared to other nursing categories. Regarding mask wearing, 53.6% of nurses had average knowledge, and 27.1% had good knowledge. Multivariable logistic regression showed that, after adjustment for age and gender, registered nurses had 3.3 times increased odds (95% confidence interval 1.5, 7.4) of having good knowledge compared to nursing assistants. A total of 68.6% of respondents followed the correct steps of handwashing every time, and 98.3% wore a mask in public places. More than half of the nurses (51.2%) kept a safe distance from others to avoid spreading SARS-CoV-2; one-third were in a crowded place(s) in the past three months, and 55.8% usually followed guidelines for social isolation as recommended by the WHO.
CONCLUSIONS: The study identified knowledge deficiencies related to hand hygiene and wearing masks among nurses. It is imperative to provide additional training on infection control measures.

UNASSIGNED: Breastfeeding mothers are prone to undernutrition. However, factors contributing to maternal undernutrition are not exhaustively understood. Hence, this study aimed to determine prevalence of undernutrition among breastfeeding mothers and identify associated factors.
UNASSIGNED: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 606 breastfeeding mothers from selected rural districts in Oromia and Sidama regional states of Ethiopia. Data were collected through an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Nutritional status was assessed using body mass index (BMI) and mid-upper-arm-circumference (MUAC). Logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with maternal undernutrition.
UNASSIGNED: One out of ten breastfeeding mothers was found undernourished as determined by BMI (12.6%) and MUAC (10.7%). Mothers who did not practice hand washing after cleaning children\'s bottom were 2 and 3 times more likely to be undernourished compared to their counters, as measured by BMI (AOR = 2.29, P = .002) and MUAC (AOR = 3.03, P < .001), respectively. Mothers living in mildly or moderately food insecure households (AOR = 2.37, P = .019) were more than two times more likely to be undernourished as determined by MUAC. Mothers who breastfed children in the age range of 9 to 11 (AOR = 2.79, P = .025) or 12 to 23 (AOR = 2.57, P = .018) months were more than two and half times more likely to be undernourished as determined by BMI.
UNASSIGNED: Maternal undernutrition is a medium-level public health problem in rural districts of Oromia and Sidama regional states in Ethiopia. The lack of hand washing practice after cleaning a child\'s bottom, household food insecurity and higher child age increased the odds of maternal undernutrition. Mothers should prioritize and improve their nutritional care as the age of their breastfed child increases. Nutrition programs in rural districts of Ethiopia should also aim to improve personal hygiene practices and food insecurity integrated with implementation researches to evaluate program\'s impact on nutritional status of breastfeeding mothers.

UNASSIGNED: To find the correlation of menstrual hygiene management (MHM) with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical cancer.
UNASSIGNED: This case-control study was conducted in a tertiary care teaching hospital for 1 year. One hundred cases (CIN or cervical cancer) and 135 controls (normal cervical cytology, Swede\'s score below 5, or normal cervical histology) were surveyed about MHM practices through a predesigned, semi-structured questionnaire by interview method. Data were analyzed on SPSS version 17.0 statistical analysis software through Chi-square test and bivariate regression analysis.
UNASSIGNED: All Poor MHM practices except frequency of change of absorbent were significantly more commonly seen in women with CIN or Cervical cancer as compared to controls (P < 0.001). The bivariate regression analysis showed that old age, illiteracy, and the use of old cloth are significant risk factors for cervical cancer.
UNASSIGNED: Poor menstrual hygiene practices of using old cloth and disposal in open are significant risk factors of cervical cancer. Good MHM practices should be widely publicized and implemented in the community to reduce the risk of cervical cancer.

OBJECTIVE: The study was to survey personal hygiene practice related to genito-urinary tract and menstrual hygiene management in female adolescents in order to obtain basic information for health education.
METHODS: With a descriptive survey design, 389 adolescents were recruited via convenience sampling in Korea. Survey instrument was the feminine and menstrual hygiene practice and perception of vaginal douching. Data were collected from a self-administered structured questionnaire.
RESULTS: Mean age of adolescents was 16.09 and menarche was at 13.21. While washing hands after urination/defecation was highly performed, wipe front to back and wash with soap and water were reported as being not well done. Twenty-eight percent reported douching habit. More positive beliefs about douching were reported by adolescents who practiced douching. Menstrual hygiene management was very appropriate with changing sanitary pads regularly with hand washing; but less performed for limiting bathing activity during menstrual periods and washing hands after activity of genito-urinary area.
CONCLUSIONS: Some adolescents practiced inadequate hygiene practices especially for body cleansing during menstrual period and vaginal douching. It is important to develop and implement school health education programs on feminine and personal hygiene for adolescents to help them perform adequate health behaviors.