Only four in 10 healthcare facilities worldwide meet basic sanitation standards for accessible and usable toilets, according to a new United Nations report.

Eleven per cent of facilities have no sanitation services at all, affecting around 936 million people.

The joint report by the World Health Organisation and UNICEF provides the first global estimates of basic sanitation in healthcare settings. Basic standards require usable toilets, including at least one dedicated for staff, one sex-separated toilet with menstrual hygiene facilities, and one accessible for people with limited mobility.

Access varies sharply by region. Only 23 per cent of facilities in sub-Saharan Africa meet the basic standard, compared with 55 per cent in central and southern Asia. The situation is worse in the world’s least-developed countries.

Beyond sanitation, the report found that 85 per cent of facilities had basic water services, 72 per cent had basic hygiene services, and 71 per cent had basic healthcare waste management.

Environmental cleaning standards, which require both protocols and trained staff, were met by just 59 per cent of facilities.

Eighteen per cent of facilities, serving about 1.5 billion people, failed to meet either of the environmental cleaning requirements. The report highlights major gaps in infection prevention and control, particularly in poorer nations where only 24 per cent of facilities meet the cleaning standard.

Photo credit: Punch Newspaper