Assessment of the feasibility and acceptability of using water pasteurization indicators to increase access to safe drinking water in the Peruvian Amazon
File(s)
Author(s)
Heitzinger, Kristen
Hawes, Stephen E
Rocha, Claudio A
Alvarez, Carlos
Evans, Carlton A
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Approximately 2 billion people lack access to microbiologically safe drinking water globally. Boiling is the most popular household water treatment method and significantly reduces diarrheal disease, but is often practiced inconsistently or ineffectively. The use of low-cost technologies to improve boiling is one approach with potential for increasing access to safe drinking water. We conducted household trials to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of water pasteurization indicators (WAPIs) in the Peruvian Amazon in 2015. A total of 28 randomly selected households were enrolled from a rural and a peri-urban community. All households trialed 2 WAPI designs, each for a 2-week period. Ninety-six percent of participants demonstrated the correct use of the WAPIs at the end of each trial, and 88% expressed satisfaction with both WAPI models. Ease of use, short treatment time, knowledge of the association between WAPI use and improved health, and the taste of treated water were among the key factors that influenced acceptability. Ease of use was the key factor that influenced design preference. Participants in both communities preferred a WAPI with a plastic box that floated on the water’s surface compared to a WAPI with a wire that was dipped into the pot of drinking water while it was heating (77% vs. 15%, p < 0.001); we selected the box design for a subsequent randomized trial of this intervention. The high feasibility and acceptability of the WAPIs in this study suggest that these interventions have potential to increase access to safe water in resource-limited settings.
Date Acceptance
2020-01-16
Citation
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, CC BY
ISSN
0002-9637
Publisher
American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Journal / Book Title
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Volume
CC BY
Copyright Statement
© The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Sponsor
Medical Research Council (MRC)
Wellcome Trust
Imperial Health Charity
Wellcome Trust
Grant Number
MR/K007467/1
105788/Z/14/Z
N/A
201251/Z/16/Z
Subjects
11 Medical and Health Sciences
Tropical Medicine
Publication Status
Published online
Date Publish Online
2020-05-04