Introductions: Hygiene related practices during menstruationare of considerable importance. This study assesses the existing level of knowledge on menstrual hygiene, and its compliance, among adolescent girls of selected slum areas in Kathmandu, Nepal. Methods: Descriptive cross sectional study design was applied and slums in Kathmandu district were selected conveniently as research site. Primary data were collected through interview by using structured questionnaire. The association between knowledge and practices were identified through chi square test. Results: There were282 respondents for study. Less than half 121 (42.9%) had adequate knowledge related to menstruation and its hygiene. Two-third 185(65.6%) of the participants used sanitary pads, 183 (98.9%), washed hands after pad change, 271 (96.1%) cleaned perineal area during menstruation, 227(80.5%) were aware about the myth and 61.9% followed social norms and restriction related with menstruation. Age of the participant, their education level and the income sources were found statistically significant with their level of knowledge on menstruation. Conclusions: More than half of adolescent girls of slums in Kathmandu district had inadequate knowledge regarding menstruation and two-third practiced menstrual hygiene.

Introductions: Personal hygiene deficiency have been found to be a serious public health problem and people often affected are school children. These have been attributed to inadequate knowledge of personal hygiene and its practices. This study was designed to explore the existing knowledge and practices of personal hygiene among the students studying at secondary level schools in Bhaktapur district, Nepal. Methods: This study was a cross- sectional study to investigate personal hygiene knowledge and practices of secondary level, grades nine and ten school children, Bhaktapur district, Kathmandu valley, Nepal. Pre-tested, self- administered questionnaire were used. Data were collated and analyzed descriptively. Results: The result showed that the secondary school students who participated in the study were evenly distributed by gender (50.4% males and 49.6% females),most of the respondents (78.8%) were in the 15-16 year age bracket. Majority of the respondents (88.5%) had good knowledge level on personal hygiene. Female students were found having more knowledge level than male students. Conversely, majority of them were noted with moderate to poor level of hygiene practices. Conclusions: Secondary school students of Bhaktapur have good knowledge on personal hygiene while lot more improvement is required in terms of practices. Integrated approach by parents, school and social media to enhance hygiene practices could be useful.

Adolescence is a transition phase from childhood to womanhood and is marked by onset of menstruation. But, it is still viewed as a religiously impure occurrence in Nepalese society due to social stigma and taboo attached to it. Menstruating females are susceptible to infections and thus, are required to maintain additional hygiene and sanitation. This study tried to explore the existing knowledge and practices on menstrual hygiene among adolescents in Bhaktapur, Nepal.The study included 168 adolescent girls studying in grade nine and ten from four different schools of Bhaktapur Municipality. A self-administered questionnaire developed in local language was used for data collection. These data were entered and analyzed using SPSS-17. Menstruation was considered as a natural physiological phenomenon by 94.6% of the adolescent school girls. Most (93.5%) of the girls used commercially available sanitary pads. The primary source of information on menstruation was their mother however, 35.1% of them reported that they had no prior knowledge on menarche. The major reasons for school absenteeism were discomfort, lack of continuous water supply and shame or fear of staining. Correct knowledge and practice score was not associated with paternal or maternal education while it was negatively correlated with age of adolescents. This study highlights the need to strengthen existing menstruation hygiene management programs in Bhaktapur, Nepal. Emphasis should be laid on providing information to girls who have not experienced menarche and also reinforce it among those who are becoming mature.

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Introductions: Transmission of healthcare associated infections through contaminated hands of healthcare workers are common. This study was designed to explore the existing compliance of hand hygiene among the healthcare workers workings in different level of health care centers of Makwanpur district of Nepal. Methods: This was a cross sectional observational study conducted in Makwanpur district, Nepal, during 2015. Healthcare workers from nine healthcare centers were selected randomly for the study. Standard observation checklists and World Health Organization guidelines on hand hygiene were used to assess the compliance of hand hygiene during patient care. Results: There were 74 participants. Overall compliance for hand washing was 24.25% (range 19.63 to 45.56). Complete steps of hand washing were performed by 38.3% of health care workers. The factors associated for noncompliance were lack of time (29.3%), example set by seniors (20%), absence or inadequate institution protocol (20%) and unfavourable health care setting (> 20%). Conclusions: Overall hand washing compliance rate amongst the healthcare workers in rural health facilities of Nepal were low (24.25%).