Table 2.
Personal hygiene and sanitation of the living environment among study participants in the intervention (n=220) and control (n=220) arms in rural Northwest Ethiopia, May 2021
| Variables | Intervention, n (%) |
Control, n (%) |
| Mothers and caregivers kept their fingernails short | ||
| Yes | 53 (24.1) | 71 (32.3) |
| No | 167 (75.9) | 149 (67.7) |
| Mothers’ and caregivers’ fingernails have visible dirt | ||
| Yes | 142 (64.5) | 140 (63.6) |
| No | 78 (35.5) | 80 (36.4) |
| Mothers’ and caregivers’ palms have visible dirt | ||
| Yes | 139 (63.2) | 141 (64.1) |
| No | 81 (36.8) | 79 (35.9) |
| Mothers and caregivers always washed hands | ||
| After visiting toilet | 173 (78.6) | 179 (81.4) |
| Before food preparation | 194 (88.2) | 190 (86.4) |
| Before eating | 197 (89.5) | 193 (87.7) |
| After defecating a child | 155 (70.5) | 157 (71.4) |
| After cleaning animal barns | 180 (81.8) | 177 (80.5) |
| Whenever hands have dirt | 131 (59.5) | 135 (61.4) |
| What mothers and caregivers usually use to wash hands | ||
| Water only | 184 (83.6) | 187 (85.0) |
| Water and soap | 19 (8.6) | 20 (9.1) |
| Water and ash | 17 (7.7) | 13 (5.9) |
| Handwashing practices of mothers and caregivers (results from the observation) | ||
| Used rubbing agent | 46 (20.9) | 45 (20.5) |
| Rubbed all parts of the hands well for at least 20 s | 52 (23.6) | 57 (25.9) |
| Wiped on their clothes to dry after washing | 49 (22.3) | 44 (20.0) |
| Dry in the air after washing | 171 (77.7) | 176 (80.0) |
| Family practised open defecation | ||
| Yes | 99 (45) | 119 (54.1) |
| No | 121 (55) | 101 (45.9) |
| Living environment has animal excreta | ||
| Yes | 83 (39.5) | 107 (48.6) |
| No | 137 (60.5) | 113 (51.4) |