Ly Anh N, Craig Christina, Maheia Dian, Gongora Yolanda, Romero Vickie, Blanco Rosalva, Lino Allison, McDavid Kelsey, Stewart Allison, Trinies Victoria, Medley Alexandra, Morey Francis, Manzanero Russell, Lozier Matthew, Murray Kristy O
Department of Pediatrics, National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2025 May 26;22(6):835. doi: 10.3390/ijerph22060835.
Hand hygiene (HH) in school settings can reduce the spread of infectious diseases and student absenteeism due to illness. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization recommended HH as a public health measure to prevent disease transmission. Understanding school staff's experiences with school-based programs is important for future program development and improvement. As part of a mixed-methods study, we conducted in-depth interviews in March 2022 with school administrators and teachers at 12 primary schools in Belize, selected based on high gaps in HH resources, to understand HH responsibilities, supplies, and challenges. An intervention was implemented to increase HH knowledge and practices among students, which included environmental nudges, supplemental provision of soap, and HH lesson implementation. Follow-up interviews were conducted in June 2023 among school administrators to garner feedback on the intervention. School staff described roles in teaching and managing HH supplies at both timepoints. The environmental nudges and HH lessons were perceived as helpful, but there were gaps remaining in HH practices, which may be partially influenced by practices and beliefs outside of school. Procurement of HH supplies remained a challenge at some schools due to financial constraints. The feedback from school staff will be valuable for the implementation of future hand hygiene programs in schools.
学校环境中的手部卫生（HH）可以减少传染病的传播以及学生因病缺勤的情况。在新冠疫情期间，世界卫生组织建议将手部卫生作为预防疾病传播的一项公共卫生措施。了解学校工作人员参与校内项目的经历对于未来项目的开发和改进至关重要。作为一项混合方法研究的一部分，我们于2022年3月对伯利兹12所小学的学校管理人员和教师进行了深入访谈，这些学校是根据手部卫生资源的巨大差距挑选出来的，目的是了解手部卫生的职责、用品和挑战。实施了一项干预措施，以提高学生对手部卫生的认识和实践，其中包括环境提示、补充提供肥皂以及开展手部卫生课程。2023年6月，我们对学校管理人员进行了跟进访谈，以收集他们对该干预措施的反馈。学校工作人员在两个时间点都描述了他们在教授和管理手部卫生用品方面的职责。环境提示和手部卫生课程被认为是有帮助的，但手部卫生实践中仍存在差距，这可能部分受到校外实践和观念的影响。由于资金限制，一些学校在采购手部卫生用品方面仍然面临挑战。学校工作人员的反馈对于未来在学校实施手部卫生项目将具有重要价值。
