Assessment of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Standards in Healthcare Facilities in Bawku West District, Ghana

Abstract

This study assessed the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) standards in healthcare facilities within the Bawku West District of Ghana. A mixed-methods approach was employed, involving 49 healthcare facilities and 175 health workers. The quantitative phase utilized a two-stage sampling procedure, stratified and simple random sampling to select health facilities and health workers. For the qualitative phase, seven key informants were purposively selected based on their relevance to the study objectives. Quantitative data were collected using semi-structured questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive statistics in SPSS version 27. Qualitative data were gathered through key informant interviews and analyzed thematically. Findings revealed that 75.5% of the healthcare facilities had access to basic water services, while 16.3 % lacked water services entirely. Additionally, 74.9% had basic sanitation services, whereas 25.1% had none. Regarding hygiene, 84% had access to basic hand hygiene services, while 9.1% lacked any hand hygiene services. Furthermore, 22.3% of facilities lacked proper waste management systems, and 28% had no structured environmental cleaning practices. Key challenges identified included the absence of dedicated water sources, inadequate toilet facilities, non-functional handwashing stations, limited availability of soap and sanitizers, insufficient hygiene training for staff, and poor waste disposal systems. Addressing these issues is crucial for enhancing the quality of healthcare delivery in the district. Consequently, the study recommends the following measures to improve WASH standards in healthcare facilities: improving WASH infrastructure; providing reliable water, soap, and hand hygiene materials; training health workers regularly on hygiene and infection control; establishing structured waste management systems; and enhancing community participation in WASH maintenance. These actions are vital to strengthening infection prevention and improving the quality of healthcare delivery in the district.