Every year Global Handwashing Day is celebrated on October 15. And as every year, this day serves as a platform to raise awareness on the importance of hand-washing with soap.
The day holds a special significance during COVID-19 and provides a stark reminder that hand-washing is one of the easiest and simplest ways to prevent the spread of any virus and ensure better health outcomes overall.
This year’s Global Handwashing Day theme is Hand Hygiene for All, calling for all of society to achieve universal hand hygiene now and for the future. This is especially relevant at present, because viruses do not discriminate on the basis of religion, cast, borders or culture.
So, it is crucial that we achieve universal hand hygiene – from rural and tribal areas to our cities. Hand hygiene must become everybody’s business. We need to create a culture of hand hygiene beyond the pandemic.
As reported by the Centre of Disease Control and Prevention, handwashing with soap can reduce the spread of a number of diseases. It can reduce diarrheal diseases by 30% to 48% and can reduce acute respiratory infections by 20%. Moreover, the flu season is upon us. During a time when we are preparing for cold and flu season, handwashing is extremely important.
HAND HYGIENE DURING COVID-19
Handwashing is also a key in the fight against COVID-19. But for people to practice handwashing, they need access to hygiene facilities. This means, a nearby handwashing facility, regular and available water supply, soaps and alcohol based hand rubs.
Keeping this in mind, UNICEF ensured distribution of critical and essential WASH utilities by motivating Gram Panchayats to procure soap, masks, sanitizers and sanitary pads. These items were then distributed in different pockets of identified high risk zone with caution. So far 151706 soaps have been distributed in the state with UNICEF’s support.
In fact, in Jharkhand, hand washing stations have been set up with UNICEF’s support at critical points especially at the entrance of public buildings and health care facilities encouraging people to do regular and thorough hand washing with soaps or alcohol based hand rub.
About 61 such Hand Washing Units were mobilized with support from partners on ground and the Finance Commission Fund in Chaibasa, Giridih and Ranchi and is being accessed by over 4000 people. 125 handwashing units have been installed by UNICEF’s support.
This year’s Global Handwashing Day calls on Governments, corporates and NGOs to celebrate hand hygiene as a central part of their COVID-19 response and at the same time start planning to create the future.
Once the immediate crisis is over, we need to rebuild better than before which means that we will need to strengthen hygiene systems. This will help to control COVID-19, prevent other new emerging diseases, and fight against long term challenges like diarrheal diseases.
I appeal to everyone to promote hand hygiene and remind those around you, your friends, relatives, and especially your children to practice this. If this behaviour is inculcated from the beginning and adopted as a culture, a lot of diseases and deaths can be prevented.
The author is the Chief of Field Office for UNICEF in Jharkhand. He has been working for children for over 27 years and has worked with several leading development organisations such as Save The Children, CARE and Xavier’s Institute of Management, Odisha.