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The availability of drinking water in health facilities is essential to provide quality care
Workers in health facilities need enough water to provide health services. Alcohol, cooking, hand hygiene, showering and bathing, as well as various general and specialized medical uses, all require a safe and reliable water supply. Water is also essential for cleaning rooms, beds, floors, toilets, sheets and linens. It is at the heart of patients' health care experiences, as it allows them to stay hydrated, clean themselves and reduce the risk of infections. Without water, a health facility is not a health facility. Yet about 1 out of 4 health facilities do not have basic water supply services, which affects about 2 billion people, while one in 8 health facilities does not have basic water services. no water supply service, affecting about 894 million people.
Health facilities lacking adequate sanitation facilities, including toilets and waste disposal, can spread diseases instead of preventing them
Sanitation is a human right. Sanitation services in health facilities are essential for providing high quality care that improves the health, well-being and dignity of patients and staff, as well as health outcomes. Health facilities without appropriate toilets and waste disposal can spread diseases instead of preventing them. Health management of excreta in health care is particularly important to ensure that fecal pathogens do not contaminate the environment of the health facility or the surrounding areas. Yet about one in five health facilities do not have a sanitation service. This means that 1.5 billion people go to health centers, no toilets at all.
In the absence of soap and water, the risk of infection is great
Effective hand hygiene in health care facilities is the cornerstone of infection prevention and control and is now considered to be the primary prevention measure for health care-associated infections and the spread of infection. antimicrobial resistance. Health workers are the main target of efforts to improve hand hygiene, as they treat several patients and may come into contact with blood and other body fluids. However, visitors to health facilities can also spread pathogens, and it is important for health care facilities to provide hand-washing facilities with soap and water in the toilets used. by patients, as well as other visitors likely to meet their needs. Globally, 1 health facility out of 6 does not have any sanitation service, which means that it does not have hygienic facilities. hands where patients are treated, as well as soap and water in the toilet.
Infectious and hazardous wastes in health facilities are often not appropriately managed to prevent dangerous exposures
Most waste produced in health facilities – around 85% – is not hazardous and can be disposed of with solid waste in general. The remaining 15% is either infectious, chemically hazardous or radioactive and must be managed appropriately to avoid hazardous exposure to health care workers, patients, visitors, waste managers and the public. Used needles and other sharp materials are generally considered the most hazardous category of health care waste, as they can easily cause needlestick injuries and subsequent infection.
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