A recent study conducted by icddr,b found poor toilet access and hygiene in Dhaka hospitals that pose significant health risks.

The study found that 68 per cent of government hospital toilets were functional, with only 33 per cent clean, while in private hospitals, 92 per cent were functional, but only 56 per cent were clean.

Conducted by icddr,b scientists in collaboration with partners at the University of Technology Sydney, Australia, and the Directorate General of Health Services at the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Bangladesh, the study was recently published in the journal PLOS ONE.

The study evaluated 2,459 toilets in Dhaka’s healthcare facilities to assess the availability, functionality, and cleanliness of toilets.

Proper sanitation and its accessibility are particularly crucial in hospitals, where disease-causing pathogens are expected to commonly circulate, it said.

High user-to-toilet ratios were observed in outpatient facilities, with one toilet for every 214 users in government hospitals and 94 users in private hospitals, significantly below the recommended standards set by WaterAid.

According to their guidelines for the construction of institutional toilets in outpatient facilities, there should be one toilet for every 20–25 patients or carers, up to the first 100 individuals, with an additional toilet for every additional 50 patients or carers.

Additionally, both government and private hospitals failed to meet the criterion of one toilet per six inpatient beds by the Bangladesh national WASH standard and implementation guidelines from 2021, the icddr’b study reveals.

There were 17 users for each toilet in government hospitals and 19 users per toilet in private hospitals.

Beyond basic functionality, hygiene, and availability, less than 1% of toilets had facilities for disabled people, and only 3% of toilets had a trash bin for menstrual pad and solid disposal.

The researchers defined toilet functionality according to criteria used by the World Health Organization and UNICEF and assessed toilet cleanliness based on the presence of visible faeces on any surface, strong faecal odour, flies, sputum, insects, rodents, and solid waste.

‘The actual sanitation conditions in Dhaka hospitals may be worse than what we found as our study was conducted in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic when many hospitals were shifting from mainly treating COVID-19 patients to general medical care. This could have led to reduced patient flow and toilet usage,’ said icddr,b’s Associate Scientist and principal investigator of the study Dr Md. Nuhu Amin.

Dr Nuhu Amin said directed increase in resources allocated for maintaining clean and working toilets in hospitals is needed, with a particular focus on meeting gendered needs and those of disabled persons.