WASH in Health Care Facilities Community of Practice
The WASH in HCF Community of Practice Initiative, facilitated by Emory University, is an action-oriented learning platform seeking to connect practitioners around the world.
The Community of Practice
Launched by Emory University’s Center for Global Safe WASH, this Community of Practice (COP) seeks to contribute to the global WASH in health care facilities initiative co-led by WHO and UNICEF, through three main objectives:
- Connect in-country WASH in healthcare facility implementers with the evidence, resources, potential partners, and funding mechanisms they need to develop, implement and advocate for WASH in HCF programs
- Provide a platform for the Community of Practice to share experience, ideas and best practices for WASH in HCF programming
- Encourage members to take action based on the latest research and best practices
Join 1000+ members to Connect. Share. Act.
for WASH in Healthcare Facilities.
Upcoming events
Where do we go from here in WASH in Healthcare Facilities?
Wednesday, October 4
8:00 – 9:30AM EDT / 15:00 – 16:30 EAT
In June, WHO and UNICEF published the Global Progress Report on WASH in Healthcare Facilities. This session will explore how members of the WASH in HCF Community of Practice can translate and implement the global recommendations into their own work. We will then deep dive into the third recommendation: developing the health workforce, with a discussion on strategies for sustained behavior change.
Do you have content to share with the Community of Practice?
Email winhcfaction@emory.edu with stories of success, resources or ideas for the next COP event!
Previous events
Ask An Expert (August 2023)
This session discussed various topics regarding HCFs including appropriate waste treatment technologies for health centers, IPC resources, and gender-responsive WASH.
Slides & recordings in English, French and Spanish can be found here.
Climate Resiliency (May 2023)
This session shared case studies on climate-resilient WASH in HCF programming and discussed resource mobilization.
Slides & recordings in English, French and Spanish can be found here.
Environmental Cleaning (March 2023)
This session summarized the progress made on environmental cleaning and experts shared their experiences from utilizing tools like the CDC Implementation Toolkit and TEACH CLEAN.
Slides & recordings in English, French and Spanish can be found here.
Global JMP Data (February 2023)
This session presented the updated JMP data and discussed how they can be leveraged for advocacy, implementation, and monitoring purposes.
Slides & recordings in English and French and Spanish can be found here.
Indicators (November 2022)
This session presented on existing metrics and definitions of program success for WASH in HCF, examples of program evaluation, and then breakout group discussions discussed and brainstormed possible indicators.
Built Environment (September 2022)
This session discussed how WASH is embedded into the broader approach to health facility infrastructure improvement.
Slides & recordings in English, French and Spanish can be found here.
Data for Action (June 2022)
This session discussed the possible uses for WASH in HCF data, including policymaking, prioritization, implementation, monitoring, and advocacy.
Slides & recordings in English, French and Spanish can be found here.
Operations & Maintenance (April 2022)
This session examined the core elements of operations and maintenance for WASH in HCF, including planning, people and budgeting.
Slides & recordings in English, French and Spanish can be found here.
Effective WASH and IPC Partnerships (February 2022)
This session’s panel discussion looked at the integration of WASH and IPC.
Slides & recordings in English and Spanish can be found here. Materials are not available in French as we encountered technical issues.
Gender-Responsive WASH in HCF (December 2021)
This session’s panel discussion looked at how we develop and implement approaches to ensure gender-responsive WASH programs and policies in all healthcare facilities.
Slides & recordings in English, French, and Spanish can be found here.
Hand Hygiene in Healthcare (October 2021)
A discussion with the community around what more is needed to improve and sustain hand hygiene among healthcare workers.
Slides and recordings in English, French and Spanish can be found here.
Launch Event (October 2021)
The introduction to the new WASH in HCF Community of Practice.
Slides & recordings in English, French, and Spanish can be found here.
Active Groups within the WASH in HCF Community of Practice
Cleaners Community of Practice
The Cleaners Community of Practice (CoP) is a group of researchers, clinicians, practitioners, implementers, and advocates that focuses on cleaners and environmental cleaning within healthcare facilities.
Read more
Often neglected and overlooked, cleaners are the primary personnel responsible for ensuring safe and clean conditions for patients and staff, yet often obtain inadequate training, receive low pay, and have inadequate access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). Download the guidance note on elevating the role of cleaners in healthcare facilities here.
Join the Cleaners Community of Practice to learn how you can elevate the critically important role of cleaners in healthcare facilities! Please email helling@worldvision.org to join the list.
Decentralized Chlorine Production Community of Practice
The global community of practice (CoP) on decentralized chlorine production is an international consortium of civil society organizations, private-sector companies, and individuals seeking to advancing innovative chlorine generation technologies and service delivery models for disinfection and water treatment.
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This Community of Practice functions as a learning, networking, and research platform which aims to stimulate collaborative and transparent discussion among partners on lessons learned, evidence gaps, and candid feedback on challenges faced during the use of on-site chlorine generators. To participate in quarterly meetings and receive updates and news, join the Decentralized Chlorine Production Community of Practice by contacting Adam Drolet (adrolet@path.org).
Recent Events:
– March 2023: Slides
– November 2021: Slides
– May 2021: Slides
Value proposition. Poor water, sanitation, and hygiene practices contribute to the spread of infections, diseases, and negative health outcomes in healthcare facilities and communities. Chlorine is a widely used, effective chemical disinfectant recommended for infection prevention and control in health care settings. However, despite its proven effectiveness, the lack of consistent availability limits the ability of healthcare facility staff to provide a safe and hygienic environment for patients. A global survey of healthcare facility conditions in 78 low-and middle-income countries revealed 36.4% lacked chlorine solution for disinfection. Chlorine can also serve as a critical tool for the delivery of safely managed water services for communities.
“A healthcare facility without WASH is not a healthcare facility.“
Dr. Maria Neira, Director of Public Health and Environment, World Health Organization