Access to handwashing facilities in Indonesia is still limited. As a result, the practice of maintaining hand hygiene to prevent disease transmission is more difficult.
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KOMPAS TEAM
·6 minutes read
Kompas/Priyombodo
The visitors wash their hands before entering the National Library of Indonesia in Jakarta, Thursday (15/10/2020). Every October 15th is celebrated as world handwashing day.
Access to handwashing facilities in Indonesia is still limited. As a result, the practice of maintaining hand hygiene to prevent disease transmission is more difficult.JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Changes in people\'s behavior, including the habit of washing hands, are an effective way to prevent transmission of Covid-19 and various other diseases. However, this change in behavior is difficult to do because people\'s access to handwashing facilities is still limited.
"Around 40 percent of the world\'s population, or around 3 billion people, do not have access to handwashing facilities at home, schools, workplaces and other public spaces where people assemble," said the Health Ministry’s public health director general Kirana Pritasari during the commemoration of World Handwashing Day on Thursday (15/10/2020) in Jakarta.
About 35 percent of the risk of disease transmission can be prevented by washing hands. The World Health Organization (WHO) stated that hands could be a medium of transmitting Covid-19. This is because the hands are most often in contact with the face, especially the eyes, nose and mouth. The face is a door for the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19 to enter the body.
In addition, 19.25 percent of people admitted they rarely wash their hands.
Although the benefits are great and it is easy to do, people are less disciplined in washing their hands with soap and running water. Data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) in 2020 show that 5.37 percent of people never or rarely wash their hands when they are outside the house. In addition, 19.25 percent of people admitted they rarely wash their hands.
It is difficult to get people to start washing their hands if access to the necessary facilities is difficult to reach. Therefore, the National Development Planning Agency’s (Bappenas) housing and settlements director Tri Dewi Virgiyanti said it was necessary to involve all stakeholders to support the availability of handwashing with soap (CTPS) facilities in public spaces.
AFP/STRINGER
Secondary school students wash their hands at temporary hand washing point before they return home as Rwandan Government decided to send back all students of boarding schools after the first case of COVID-19, caused by the novel coronavirus was found on March 13, in Kigali, on March 16, 2020.
According to BPS data, nationally the availability of CTPS facilities in households is around 50 percent. Meanwhile, the availability of CTPS facilities in markets is 48.59 percent, places of worship 25 percent, workplaces 18 percent and shopping centers such as malls only 23 percent.
"The [field] conditions are far from expectations. The availability of such facilities should have reached 80 percent. It is important to ensure the availability of clean water and good behavior. Of the 50 percent of households that have CTPS facilities, only 30 percent of the families wash their hands frequently,” said Tri.
According to Debora Comini, a representative of Unicef Indonesia, from existing data, around 60 million Indonesians, or 1 in 4 people, do not have access to public handwashing facilities. The number of these facilities is also very lacking in important places, such as schools, offices, health facilities and public spaces.
Simple way
"The Covid-19 pandemic reminds us that the effective way to help prevent disease transmission is very simple. To defeat Covid-19, and reduce the risk of another outbreak, every Indonesian must have access to handwashing facilities with soap," she said.
Efforts to increase public access to handwashing facilities and to change hygiene behavior are considered crucial. Campaigns and dissemination of hygiene behavior and the habit of washing hands with soap must be carried out by all policy makers.
The habit of washing hands is not only effective in preventing the spread of Covid-19, but also other health issues, such as diarrhea and malnutrition.
According to Agus Suprapto, the Coordinating Human Development and Culture Ministry’s deputy for health quality improvement and population development coordination, encouraging people to wash their hands with soap and running water is a long-term investment in public health resilience. The habit of washing hands is not only effective in preventing the spread of Covid-19, but also other health issues, such as diarrhea and malnutrition.
Therefore, awareness of washing hands must be instilled from childhood. The concept of washing hands that is taught must be good and correct. Wash your hands before eating, after going to the bathroom, after touching objects in public places and before touching your face.
Erwin Simangunsong, chief of program operation at Save the Children in Indonesia, added that although handwashing was not new, the habit is beneficial for personal hygiene. In times of pandemic, these habits can save lives. Various studies say that washing hands reduces the risk of diarrhea by 30-48 percent, reduces the risk of acute respiratory infections by 20 percent and suppresses the risk of transmitting pathogens related to outbreaks such as Ebola.
"The habit of washing hands with soap and running water starts at a child\'s age. Self-cleaning spurs productivity. This means that children are less likely to skip school because of illness, such as diarrhea and cholera. Schools need to provide water and soap facilities," he said.
More than 5,810 patients recovered, so that a total of 273,661 patients were declared free from Covid-19.
Meanwhile, according to the Covid-19 Handling Task Force, on Thursday (15/10), there were 4,411 new cases of Covid-19, bringing the total number to 349,160 cases. The number of patients died increased by 112, bringing a total of 12,268 deaths. More than 5,810 patients recovered, so that a total of 273,661 patients were declared free from Covid-19.
Primary services
On a separate occasion, Yoni Syukriani, former dean of the School of Medicine, Padjadjaran University, said the Covid-19 pandemic showed the weakness of (our) primary healthcare system and the dominance of hospital-based curative approaches. Learning from Thailand\'s success in overcoming Covid-19, the primary care system should be at the forefront in preventing the spread of the outbreak through a public health approach.
KOMPAS/AGUS SUSANTO
A resident crosses a mural against Covid-19 painted by a number of local teenagers at RW 03 Cakung Barat Urban Village, Cakung, East Jakarta, on Friday (16/10/2020).
"Many countries, as well as the WHO, have devoted more energy to hospital readiness, including doctors. This means a focus on secondary and tertiary services. However, we are getting more aware that the pandemic makes us forget the importance of primary services," he said.
According to Yoni, the pandemic’s biggest problem is at the primary level. "Services at the primary level must be a fortress to prevent sufferers from getting sicker and, eventually, need further services. If you want to deal with the pandemic comprehensively, primary services must be better prepared," he said.(TAN/SON/AIK
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