WASH in Healthcare Facilities Training Course

Participants can assess water supply reliability and identify operational controls for critical service points.

• Water safety plans apply catchment-to-consumer risk management principles
• Source appraisal compares continuity, yield, quality, ownership and climate exposure
• Demand calculations cover wards, theatres, laundry, kitchens and staff accommodation
• Storage sizing accounts for peak demand, outages and fire reserves
• Distribution mapping locates cross-connections, dead legs, leaks and pressure losses
• Residual chlorine monitoring uses DPD testing, records and corrective limits

Participants can interpret water quality evidence and initiate proportionate corrective actions.

• WHO drinking-water quality guidelines set health-based targets and surveillance priorities
• Microbial hazards include faecal contamination, Legionella and opportunistic premise pathogens
• Sampling plans specify locations, frequency, containers, preservation and chain-of-custody
• Interpret E. coli, turbidity, chlorine residual and pH results
• Boil-water, chlorination and alternate-supply actions follow incident escalation procedures
• Laboratory result trends distinguish recurrent contamination from isolated sampling errors

Participants can evaluate sanitation and hand hygiene services against patient safety and accessibility requirements.

• Excreta-flow diagrams trace containment, emptying, transport, treatment and disposal
• Toilet design addresses accessibility, privacy, lighting, ventilation and menstrual hygiene
• Patient-toilet ratios and sex-separated facilities inform service adequacy assessments
• Onsite sanitation inspections identify seepage, overflows, structural failure and exposure
• Faecal sludge management contracts define safe emptying, transport and disposal controls
• Handwashing stations meet point-of-care placement, water and soap requirements

Participants can connect WASH service improvements with infection prevention and control measures.

• WHO IPC core components link WASH services to infection prevention
• Five Moments for Hand Hygiene guide clinical hand hygiene observations
• Hand hygiene audits measure compliance, product availability and behavioural barriers
• Environmental cleaning schedules assign frequencies, methods, products and responsibilities
• Healthcare-associated infection pathways inform prioritisation of WASH control measures
• Outbreak investigations connect water, sanitation and hygiene failures with transmission

Participants can assess healthcare waste systems and specify controls for safe handling and treatment.

• Waste audits quantify generation by ward, waste stream and occupancy
• WHO waste categories distinguish infectious, sharps, pharmaceutical, chemical and general waste
• Segregation systems specify colour coding, containers, labels and point-of-generation placement
• Sharps injury prevention covers safety boxes, filling limits and collection routes
• Treatment selection compares autoclaving, incineration, burial and offsite disposal risks
• Occupational safety controls address PPE, vaccinations, training and incident reporting

Participants can establish operational systems that sustain WASH services after improvement works are completed.

• Preventive maintenance schedules cover pumps, tanks, piping, toilets and handwashing stations
• Asset registers record condition, criticality, service history and replacement needs
• Standard operating procedures define cleaning, chlorination, sampling and emergency duties
• Spare-parts planning identifies lead times, minimum stock and approved suppliers
• Utility bills and meter readings reveal losses, consumption anomalies and costs
• Service contracts establish performance standards, inspection rights and remedy clauses

Participants can prepare practical WASH contingencies for outbreaks, disasters and utility failures.

• Risk registers score hazards by likelihood, consequence, controls and owners
• Contingency water supplies combine trucking, packaged water, boreholes and storage
• Emergency sanitation layouts separate patients, staff, visitors and infectious waste
• Cholera preparedness prioritises safe water, hand hygiene and waste controls
• Power-failure protocols protect pumping, treatment, cold chain and essential services
• Incident command arrangements assign decisions, communications, logistics and documentation

Participants can convert assessment findings into measurable and accountable WASH improvement actions.

• WASH FIT assessment scoring identifies gaps across service domains and actions
• Root-cause analysis separates immediate failures from system and governance causes
• Prioritisation matrices rank actions by risk reduction, feasibility, cost and equity
• Improvement plans assign milestones, accountable owners, budgets and verification measures
• SMART indicators track functionality, availability, quality, use and maintenance response
• Supportive supervision uses observation, records review, feedback and follow-up actions

Participants can present a costed, evidence-based WASH improvement plan to facility decision-makers.

• Life-cycle costing captures capital, consumables, labour, energy, maintenance and renewal
• Budget justifications connect WASH investments with patient safety and service continuity
• Procurement specifications define performance, quality assurance, installation and training requirements
• Stakeholder engagement aligns clinicians, engineers, cleaners, administrators and community representatives
• Dashboard reviews present indicators, risks, decisions and overdue corrective actions
• Individual application plans define first-quarter priorities, sponsors and evidence of progress