Hospitals worldwide face significant deficiencies in water, sanitation, and hygiene services, report finds

Despite progress in water, hygiene, and waste management, significant shortcomings persist, particularly in facility cleaning and access to appropriate sanitation. Gabon is not an exception to these findings. The report highlights that health facilities still lack the minimum sanitary conditions necessary for safe care.

While 85% of facilities had basic water supply, 72% had hygiene services, and 71% had healthcare waste management, sanitation remains a major weakness. These deficiencies, affecting hospital rooms, operating theaters, examination rooms, and sanitary facilities, can promote the spread of preventable infections and expose patients and staff to health risks. Globally, 89% of facilities had some form of sanitation and 85% had usable toilets.

However, for a service to be considered basic, it must be improved, usable, and meet the needs of patients and staff, including women, girls, and people with reduced mobility. Only about half of facilities had gender-separated toilets, were accessible to people with disabilities, or were adapted for menstrual hygiene. Bruce Gordon, head of the WHO's Water, Sanitation, and Health unit, emphasized the need to integrate reliable water supply, accessible sanitation, hand hygiene, effective facility cleaning, and safe waste management into health policy planni