The Impact of Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Menstrual Education on Menstrual Hygiene Management Practices in an Urban Slum of Indonesia

Abstract

Inadequate water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and knowledge on menstruation deprive women and girls of an ability to practice menstrual hygiene management. This study sought to address these issues by targeting women and girls (ten pairs of mothers and daughters, three schoolteachers) living in an urban slum of Indonesia through extensive literature review in local languages and semi-structured interview surveys. Our findings suggest that poor WASH facilities hinder schoolgirls’ ability to change their napkins, which in turn may lead to poor health. Literature review showed that lack of opportunities of learning how to treat menstruation (school curriculums), that is, educative intervention targeting this population may also affect the ability of managing menstrual hygiene. This study adds to extant research on menstrual hygiene management in underprivileged regions by showing that inadequate WASH facilities and scarce information provided to the population may limit their ability to be physical and mentally sound.