Lack of hygiene and sanitation affects 1/4 of health centers

Health facilities worldwide may be suffering from a lack of basic sanitation, according to a new report by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The survey pointed out that the facilities do not meet the basic requirements to prevent and prevent infections, putting the lives of more than 2 billion people at risk.

Without the minimum conditions required for health services, such as clean water and hygiene in place, the chances of illness and cuts due to complications increase.

According to the WHO, about 1 in 4 health facilities in the world suffers from these problems in basic services.

Although the data are more significant in the so-called developing countries (a country with a low and medium standard of living), the condition affects regions throughout the world.

Read more: 10 global health threats of concern to WHO in 2019

Danger in childbirth

The lack of basic resources is also capable of affecting the moment of delivery, putting the integrity of the mother and baby at risk, according to the entity’s report.

Without the minimum conditions mentioned at the beginning of the news, the risk of babies contracting some type of infection because of the precarious conditions of the hospital increases, and at that moment, hygiene on the spot and sterile equipment can be decisive for the child’s health.

According to the organization’s report, infections at the time of delivery are responsible for 26% of newborn baby deaths, and also 11% of the death rate of women who gave birth.

Hospital trash

Also present in the WHO bulletin, the disposal of hospital waste in inappropriate places is another alert made by the health authority.

The separation of these residues must be done in a safe way so that it does not contaminate the environment and also other people who can handle the garbage.

For this reason, it is important to be attentive to the way in which these materials are disposed of, and there must be strict control, by the responsible entities, over the destination and routing given to hospital waste.


The new bulletin from the World Health Organization is the result of a study carried out worldwide on basic conditions such as water, sanitation and hygiene in health facilities.

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