EFFECT OF SEVERAL INTERVENTIONS ON THE FREQUENCY OF HANDWASHING AMONGELEMENTARY PUBLIC-SCHOOL CHILDREN

Background: The purpose of this educational project was to assess the effect of several interventions on the frequency of handwashing among elementary public school children. Methods: Participants in this proje ct were first-graders and fourth-graders from jurisdictions within a m id-Atlantic metropolitan area. Phase I included a baseline assessment of bathroom cleanliness as well as adequacy of supplies for handwashin g in each school. During phase 2, the frequency of handwashing before lunch or after bathroom use was monitored and recorded during a 2-mont h period. The schools were separated into four groups: a peer educatio n group, a hand wipes and instructional poster group, a combination of the education and hand wipes/poster groups, and a (control) compariso n school. Results: Overall, a significant increase occurred in the pro portion of handwashing frequency from preintervention to postintervent ion for each intervention group (wipes: 0.50 vs 0.66, p = 0.03; educat ion only: 0.64 vs 0.72, p = 0.02; and education and wipes: 0.45 vs 0.6 7, p = 0.03) but not in the control group (0.42 vs 0.46, p = 0.26). Wh en the first 3 weeks and the last 3 weeks after intervention were comp ared, handwashing frequency remained unchanged in the wipes only group (0.66 vs 0.66, p = 0.96), decreased in the education group (0.77 vs 0 .65, p = 0.006), and increased in the education and wipes group (0.58 vs 0.75, p = 0.003), as well as in the control group (0.37 vs 0.52, p = 0.01). Conclusion: Education combined with accessible convenient han d hygiene may result in a sustainable increase in the frequency of han dwashing among elementary school children.