Lack Of Access To Effective Handwashing Puts 50 Million Indians At High COVID-19 Risk: Study

Bhubaneswar: A recent study by the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Wahington, US,  found that more than 50 million Indians do not have proper access to soap and clean water for effective handwashing. This puts us at a greater risk for transmission and contamination of COVID-19 disease. 

Over 2 billion people in low and middle-income countries, over a quarter of the world’s population, are at a greater risk of transmitting coronavirus that those in wealthier countries. 

The study, published in the journal Environment Health Perspectives, further revealed that more than 50 per cent of the people in Sub-Saharan Africa and Oceania face scarcity of effective handwashing methods. 

“Handwashing is one of the key measures to prevent COVID transmission, yet it is distressing that access is unavailable in many countries that also have limited health care capacity,” said Michael Brauer, a professor at IHME.

“Temporary fixes, such as hand sanitizer or water trucks, are just that — temporary fixes,” he further added.

The basic undertone of this problem demands implementation of long-term solutions that can effectively protect people against COVID-19 and prevent more than 700,000 deaths each year due to poor handwashing access.

Even though 25 per cent of the world population lacks access to effective handwashing facilities, there has been a substantial improvement in some countries, the study noted.

These countries are Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Nepal, and Tanzania, that have effectively improved their nation’s sanitation.

The comprehensive study, however, has not delved into estimation of access to handwashing facilities in non-household settings such as schools, workplaces, health care facilities, and other public locations such as markets. 

Despite this, lack of access to soap and clean water in more than 46 countries paints a grim picture of the world we are living in.