Championing a successful school health club

Of all the schools impacted by the Rotary-USAID partnership in Ghana, the Doryumu Basic School “B,” located in the Shai-Osudoku district, has excelled the most in terms of the practice of hygiene habits and the maintenance of a healthy environment. This is largely due to the school’s health club.

In meeting the members of Doryumu Basic School’s health club, one is struck by their appearance: they are noticeably better dressed than most other students. That is because their roles as hygiene promoters and enforcers have forced them to always practice what they preach to their peers. “Everyone should keep their environment, washroom and body clean so that they don’t fall sick,” asserted Michael, the club’s president.

The health club is made up of 10 students (5 boys and 5 girls), with each serving specific roles (president, vice-president, a secretary, two organizers, two “WASH detectives” and three “toilet angels”). WASH detectives make sure their peers are practicing effective handwashing and following hygiene regulations, while toilet angels make sure sanitation facilities are properly used and kept them clean.

“This school has been extremely receptive and compliant with all regulations of the School Health Education Program (SHEP). The school’s head and SHEP coordinators are very active,” according to Peter Larbi, a local field agent of Global Communities, the implementing agency of USAID Ghana’s WASH for Health program. Walking on the school grounds, one can see tippy taps, simple, hand-made water dispenser to wash your hands in areas where there is no running water, and WASH related messages on notice boards.

The influence of the school health club extends beyond the school. Some students have built tippy taps for their family in their homes. Many even replace them when they break down. In other homes, older siblings and parents reject these changes but more behavior change campaigns by Rotary and USAID and encouragement by their peers may overcome such resistance.

Before the intervention of the partnership, and due to the lack of adequate sanitation facilities and safe water, students in the school practiced open defecation. The partnership provided the school a new toilet facility. Then, the school invested in connecting water to the facilities and adding water storage tanks to cater to their 320 students. The Parents-Teacher Association also purchased cleaning consumables. Finally, Rotary’s partner, Global Communities, a development agency contracted by USAID to implement the partnership program in Ghana, trained the school’s health coordinators in the national SHEP.

Contributed by Rotary member Edmund Dartey. Editing by RI’s Mohamed Keita. Photography by Andrew Esiebo

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