European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

ASSESSMENT OF SANITATION METHODS UTILIZATION AMONG HOUSEHOLDS, IN EL-JALLABIYA, EL-OBEID URBAN AREA, NORTH KORDOFAN STATE, SUDAN

Halima B. G. Tigaidi*, Musa Adam Osman Mohammed, Magda E. Ahmed, Osman K. Saeed, Hiba A. A. Abdallah

ABSTRACT

Background and Objective: Sanitation is essential for promoting community health. It reduces the spread of diseases through controlling vectors, ensures the safety of water and food, and improves the overall quality of our environment. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional community-based study was carried out to assess sanitation method utilization among El-Jallabiya Citizens in El-Obeid, North Kordofan State, Sudan. A total of 121 households were surveyed. For data collection a self-administered questionnaire was designed and distributed through a clustered sampling technique, and a simple random sampling technique was used to select the sample size, determined from each block. Data were entered, processed, and analyzed using the Statistical Package of Social Sciences (SPSS) version (23.0) software. Chi-square (χ2) was used to determine whether there is a significant association between different variables, and assessed the strength of correlation using Odd Raito (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: The findings showed that (16.5%) were males, whereas (83%) were females. (30.2%) of them are uneducated, and (40.9%) have a basic level of education. The level of knowledge towards hazards of latrines and sanitation-related diseases was poor in (61.1%) of participants. (93.4%) had latrines at home. Only (26.4%) of citizens had washed their hands after defecation, and soap for hand washing was available in (23.1%). Participation in sanitation campaigns was (35.5%). Utilization of latrines [p= 0.193, OR 0.823; 95% CI (0.756, 0.896)] wasn’t significantly associated with gender and hand washing practice after defecation [p= 0.000, OR 0.375; 95% CI (0.240, 0.587)] was significantly associated with gender. There was highly statistically significant association between educational level and utilization of latrines (93.4%), and hand washing practice after defecation was (26.4%); (p= 0.000). Conclusion: Absence of a role for local and health authorities in waste disposal. There was a poor knowledge regarding the importance of sanitation methods and their hazards, and sanitation-related diseases. Therefore, there need for health education programs to be conducted among the population to increase their awareness regarding personal hygiene, such as hand washing after defecation.

Keywords: Assessment, Sanitation, Methods, Households, Utilization, El-Obeid, Eljallabiya.