Local news – 29.6.11 - By Mary Tioko - Community Led Total Sanitation (C.L.T.S) workshop

The workshop that has been organized by World vision Lokori integrated Program Area is facilitated by water sanitation and health project officer (WASH) Mr. Jackson Ewat and public health officer Loima District Mr. Jairus Mukangala has entered its second day of the theory before going for practicals tomorrow. The workshop has brought together 30 participants drawn from Turkana East and Turkana south Districts. The training aims at training teachers of trainers (chiefs, elders, religious leaders, community/village health committees), on Participatory Hygiene and Sanitation transformation (PHAST ) and C.L.T.S.
The facilitator took the participants through various Ways in which they get diseases saying that diseases are divided in three categories. Airborne, oral and diseases that are transmitted through the skin. In these categories Mr.Mukangala dwelt more on the oral way of transmission. He said that the fecal matter is the main cause of many illnesses in Turkana county due to cultural practices. Mr. Mukangala also talked about the five F's as ways through which they acquire germs I.e Fingers, Field, Fluid, Food and flies .
The preventive measures are, washing hands with soap for sometime in order for the soap to react with the germs and thus killing them after defecation and before eating. Keep the finger nails short, boil water before drinking, keep your environment clean, proper use of latrine's, wash raw fruits and vegetables before eating, proper disposal of wastes (disposal sites). The participants were also encouraged to clear bushes around their compounds, proper ventilation of houses, spraying of stagnant water with appropriate chemicals to prevent mosquito breeding, sleeping under treated mosquito nets, drain all stagnant water within the compounds, general personal hygiene by drying utensils on the direct light since it has an effect of bactericidal, covering of all left over foods, reheating of left over food before eating, brushing teeth after every meal, avoid spitting anyhow, protect water supply / sources, continuous health education, and use of gumboots in swampy areas to avoid contraction of bilateral /schstosomiasis.
He also demonstrated on house hold water treatment using pur, aqua tabs and water purifications tabs after taking the participants through the V. I. P principals and the quality of the various latrines in the area. He was perturbed when he saw some of the purported V.I.P latrines having ventilations warning all those who construct latrines to seek for quality assurance assistance in order to achieve the desired results in this exercise.