Topics / Hygiene / Targeted Home Hygiene

Research has shown that most of the contamination of infectious disease takes place in the home. As most people spend a considerable amount of time there, promoting home hygiene is a key health intervention.

With common but also new diseases being spread, the promotion of improved hygiene in the home and for the community is the pillar of any public health campaign.

Promoting hygiene education and developing community-based projects for its dissemination can empower communities and individuals to take responsibility for their health. A total approach targeting hygiene is important: identify routes of transmission of infection at home and in the community and target hygiene measures at critical points to break the chain of transmission.

The analysis should focus on the family and the range of actions they need to undertake (food and water hygiene, hand washing, safe disposal of human and other waste) in order to protect themselves from infectious disease.

Called the Targeted Home Hygiene approach, it was developed by the International Scientific Forum on Hygiene (IFH)  to offer practical guidance on home hygiene practices. The approach focuses on the family, with additional components targeting the community such as integration into school curricula and public health campaigns.

WSSCC has worked closely with IFH for several years. Publications produced through the partnership include an all-inclusive resource guide on home hygiene titled, "Home Hygiene in Developing Countries, prevention of infection in the home and peri-domestic setting." It can be found in the Resource section.

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