Sanitation in India is at a critical juncture. The Indian government has been contemplating new strategies to deal with the country's sanitation crisis by making massive investments under the Swachh Bharat Mission. Introducing sanitation programmes that reflect user needs and preferences will be critical to the program's success and impact, especially understanding women's sanitation needs can prove to be an important factor influencing the success of sanitation programmes in the country.
The paper titled 'Sanitation-related psychosocial stress: A grounded theory study of women across the life-course in Odisha, India' published in the journal Social Science and Medicine, informs that many of the sanitation interventions until recently have focused on the impacts of poor sanitation on the health of children. However, there has been a growing awareness in recent years on the unique health risks that women face because of inadequate sanitation.
For example, inadequate sanitation is linked to increased maternal mortality due to risk from unhygienic birthing practices and poor infection control, urinary and genital tract infections, urinary incontinence and chronic constipation as well as increasing the probability of sexual violence among women.
A combination of physical, social and environmental factors play a role in influencing poor health outcomes among women. A number of studies in low income countries have found the link between insufficient access to basic water and sanitation facilities and psychosocial stress among women.
Current discussions around sanitation-related psychosocial stress focus primarily on the experience of adolescent girls, particularly in the context of managing menstruation. However, experience shows that these stressors extend beyond adolescence and are significant throughout the life of women, occur across the range of sanitation behaviors and are not limited to the menstrual period.
The paper presents the findings of a study that examines the range of sanitation-related psychosocial stressors experienced by women during routine sanitation practices in Odisha. For the study, indepth interviews with 56 women from four life stages namely adolescence, newly married, pregnant and adulthood from three settings such as urban slums, rural villages and indigenous villages were conducted.
The paper argues that this study has implications for how sanitation is defined and improvement activities are designed. It reveals that:
The paper ends by arguing for the urgent need to strengthen gender sensitive policies and work with women to address barriers to sanitation as well as to reduce sanitation related psychosocial stressors .
Please download a copy of the paper below.