Poor access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) may adversely impact the health of mothers and their newborn babies at the time of pregnancy, delivery, and during the postpartum period. Despite the emphasis on the reduction of maternal mortality and improvement of women’s health by 2030, the link between WASH and maternal health has not been adequately explored. Understanding the impact of WASH on maternal health could support efforts to leverage greater progress in reducing maternal mortality and improving maternal and newborn health. This study explored how WASH impacts women during pregnancy, childbirth birth and the postnatal period, as well as the perceived burden of diseases associated with poor WASH in Osuk Ntan community, Akwa Ibom State. Data were collected from a sample of 30 women of reproductive age (15-49) using in-depth interviews (IDI) and Focus group discussions (FGD); and thematic analysis was utilised for data analysis. The findings of the study indicated poor access to WASH infrastructure in the study community. The perceived burden of diseases associated with poor WASH reported by most of the women were dysentery, Diarrhoea, cholera, tract infections, itching skin, eczema, Typhoid, and malaria. There were also reports of miscarriages and injuries resulting from falls due to the bad condition of the road to the stream, which is the only source of water in the community. The outcome of the study was the implementation of an intervention program (borehole water scheme) to enhance access to WASH infrastructure, reduce the burden of the reported diseases, and improve maternal health in the study community. Furthermore, the study provided evidence-based data for future innovative WASH and maternal health interventions that can be replicated in other rural communities
Ononokpono et al. (Sat,) studied this question.