Water and Sanitation Hygiene Practices for Under-Five Children among Households of Sugali Tribe of Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh, India

BACKGROUND: Increased mortality is associated with poor household water, sanitation, and hygiene (WaSH) practices. The objective was to study the WaSH practices for under-five children among households of Sugali Tribe, Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh, India. METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted in four mandals in 2012. A total of 500 households with under-five children were identified. Data was collected from mothers/caregivers. A summary WaSH score was generated from four specific indices, water, sanitation, hygiene, and hand washing practices, and determinants were identified. RESULTS: Of the total households, 69% reported doing nothing at home to make the water safe for drinking. Over 90% of the households reported storing water in a utensil covered with a lid and retrieving water by dipping glass in the vessels. Open defecation was a commonly reported practice (84.8%). About three-fifths of the study's households reported using water and soap for cleaning dirty hands and one-third (37.4%) reported using water and soap after defecation. The median WaSH score was 15. In the hierarchical stepwise multiple linear regression, only socioeconomic variables were significantly associated with WaSH score. CONCLUSION: WaSH related practices were generally poor in people of the Sugali Tribe in Andhra Pradesh, India.