MANILA: The Department of Health (DOH) has emphasized the critical role of proper handwashing in preventing diseases and has urged local leaders to invest in water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure to achieve universal health outcomes.
According to Philippines News Agency, the DOH has integrated water supply, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) into its eight priority health outcomes, with a strategic goal to ensure 100 percent of the population has access to clean water, up from the current 88 percent. The agency highlighted the importance of local leadership in prioritizing hand hygiene facilities to combat health risks, especially in communities vulnerable to water-related challenges. DOH Secretary Teodoro Herbosa, in a recent news release, stated, “Local leaders who prioritize access to clean and safe water for everyone in their communities make clean hands the first line of defense against disease.”
The DOH is also advocating for enhanced hand hygiene practices in educational settings through the WASH
in Schools program, collaborating with the Department of Education. This initiative includes providing technical and financial support for the maintenance and repair of sanitation facilities, implementing routine handwashing activities, and installing group handwashing stations in schools.
Moreover, the DOH is actively participating in the development of the Global Guidelines for Hand Hygiene in Community Settings, a project led by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund. WHO Representative to the Philippines, Rui Paulo, underscored the importance of hand hygiene in achieving Universal Health Care, noting that prioritizing infection prevention and control through effective hand hygiene can significantly improve patient safety and overall health outcomes.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention supports these initiatives, noting that handwashing can reduce the transmission of diarrheal diseases like typhoid, cholera, and gastroenteritis by
30 percent, and respiratory infections such as colds, flu, COVID-19, and tuberculosis by 20 percent. It also helps prevent diseases such as mpox and infections from salmonella and soil-transmitted parasites.
The DOH, in collaboration with the WHO, celebrates Global Handwashing Day every October 15, to raise awareness and promote handwashing as a simple, effective, and affordable way to prevent diseases and save lives.