HAND HYGIENE AWARENESS, SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIORS, AND OBSERVED AVAILABILITY OF HANDWASHING MATERIALS AMONG RESIDENTS OF KORAIL SLUMS, DHAKA, BANGLADESH

Abstract

Background: Rapid urbanization in Bangladesh has led to the expansion of informal settlements, such as the Korail Slum in Dhaka, characterized by poor living conditions and inadequate water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure. However, data are scarce regarding hand hygiene awareness, self-reported behaviors, and observed (objectively verified) availability of handwashing materials in households in Korail Slum. Objective: To describe hand hygiene awareness, self-reported hand hygiene behaviors at key moments for hand hygiene, and observed conditions of household handwashing place among residents of Korail Slums, Dhaka, Bangladesh Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study among 404 adult residents of Korail Slum. We selected our participants using systematic random sampling and collected data by structured interviews and rapid observations. We analyzed data using descriptive statistics. Results: Most of our participants were married women with a mean age of 34 years. Nearly all participants (96.3%) identified toilet use as a key moment for hand hygiene, but only 16.6% reported always washing hands with soap and water after using the toilet. Rapid observation data showed that 27.6% of households had both water and soap/detergent at handwashing stations. Participants from households with both water and soap/detergent at handwashing stations were significantly more likely to report always washing hands at key moments compared to participants from households without the water and soap/detergent (all p-values < 0.001). Conclusion: Significant disparities exist between awareness of hand hygiene and reported behaviors. The findings provide basic information and basis for future development of targeted interventions. Limitation regarding generalizability should be considered as caveats in the interpretation of the study findings.