Sanitation and hygiene knowledge, attitude and practices in urban setting of Bangalore: A cross-sectional study.
Background and objective: Unsafe drinking water, poor hygienic conditions and improper disposal of human excreta and refuse is one of the prime concerns in India. Sanitation and hygiene practices are heavily influenced by people’s knowledge and attitude towards it. Present study was conducted to obtain baseline information on existing knowledge, attitude and practices of sanitation and hygiene in urban setting of Bangalore, India.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was undertaken among 480 households in Hegganhalli locality of Bangalore city from January 2016 to December 2016. Systematic random sampling technique was applied to obtain the desired sample size. Information on socio-demographic characteristics and existing knowledge, attitude and practices regarding sanitation and hygiene was gathered by using pretested, semi-structured questionnaire. SPSS 15.0 software was used for data analysis.
Results: The data on knowledge revealed that 88.3% respondents attributed sanitation and hygiene to hand hygiene followed by safe disposal of faeces (57.7%). Majority of respondents had adequate knowledge about sanitation and hygiene. Study found a significant association between knowledge and socio-economic status (χ2=8.40, p=0.01). The data on practices revealed that, 55.6% respondents were not following any methods of drinking water treatment. Only 11% respondents clean their water storage containers daily and 53.8% dispose solid waste daily. Significant association was found between sanitation and hygiene practices and socio-economic status (χ2=18.31, p=0.001), and family size (χ2=13.00, p=0.01).
Interpretation and conclusion: The finding of the study lead us to conclude that existing knowledge of respondents regarding sanitation and hygiene was satisfactory but there was a clear gap between knowledge and actual practices. Hence, implementation of an effective behavior change communication strategy is a prerequisite to translate knowledge into actual practice.