Crossing the Finish Line: Sustaining Behavior Change for the Prevention and Elimination of NTDs

Written By the Neglected Tropical Disease NGO Network WASH Working Group.

Access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) is a fundamental human right. Improvements in health and increasing life expectancy across much of the world can be attributed to investments that improve environmental conditions and healthy behaviors. However, inequities in accessing services mean that many of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable communities still lack sustained access to WASH infrastructure of sufficient quality. This leads to ill-health, including neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), which exacerbate social and economic challenges and can trap entire communities in a cycle of poverty and marginalization.

The presence of NTDs is an indicator of the need to improve access to WASH. Many NTDs, such as trachoma, soil transmitted helminths and schistosomiasis, are preventable through practicing the same behaviors, such as reducing open defecation, maintaining sanitation facilities, and hand and face washing with soap. Other NTDs require WASH access to treat the symptoms caused by the disease, such as personal hygiene to reduce the occurrence of acute attacks in people with lymphedema due to lymphatic filariasis.