Who and unicef joint monitoring programme jmp for drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene has used the following definition of mhm. Policy brief menstrual hygiene management menstrual hygiene. Varina tjon a ten slightly similar to the approach of brac are the selfhelp groups in the indian federal state of tamil nadu that produce and sell sanitary napkins. Womens body is more sensitive to infections during this period. Menstrual hygiene medical womens international association. Menstruation is a taboo subject across the world, which can lead to misinformation and the promotion of dangerous menstrual hygiene practices. This note looks at a recent campaign that aimed to overcome the barriers to change. Why is menstrual hygiene and management essential for. The potential menstrual hygiene management barriers faced by adolescent girls and women in workplace environments in low and middleincome countries has been under addressed in research, programming and policy. Despite global efforts to reduce poverty among women in such contexts, there has been insufficient attention to the water and sanitation related barriers, specifically. Introduction to the menstrual hygiene management mhm operational guidelines. Myths and stigmas surrounding menstruation cause some women and girls to miss school or work or go into isolation. Girls love to read stories in the book and learn about menstruation on their own. Menstrual hygiene is vital to the empowerment and wellbeing of women and girls worldwide.
The vision behind mh day is a world in which every woman and girl is able to manage. The importance of menstrual hygiene management for sexual. Read on to know more about repercussions of poor menstrual hygiene. Background paper for usaid on measuring wash and food hygiene practices definition of goals to be tackled post 2015 by the joint monitoring programme. Jun 04, 2019 according to joint monitoring programme jmp of who and unicef, menstrual hygiene management refers to. Menstruation and menstrual practices still face many social, cultural, and religious restrictions which are a big barrier in the path of menstrual hygiene management.
Menstruation is the process of discharge of blood and mucus from inner lining of uterus through vagina. The findings of the study showed a significant positive association between good knowledge of menstruation and educational status of mothers aor 1. Waterlines january 2015 complete issue selected articles. It was initiated by the germanbased ngo wash united in 2014 and aims to benefit women and girls worldwide. The issue of menstrual hygiene is inadequately acknowledged and has not received proper attention. Menstrual hygiene management menstrual hygiene day. Women and adolescent girls are using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect menstrual blood, that can be changed in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of a menstrual period, using soap and water for washing the body as required, and having. Despite being an important issue concerning women and girls in the menstruating age group mhm is often overlooked in postdisaster responses. Menstrual hygiene management among women and adolescent girls. Menstrual hygiene management is an integral part of the swachh bharat mission guidelines sbmg the menstrual hygiene management guideline is issued by the ministry of drinking water and sanitation to support all adolescent girls and women it outlines what needs to be done by state governments, district.
The girls and women will be empowered to advocate for uplifting the existing sanitation. Waterlines, jan 2015 issue on menstrual hygiene management. Menstrual hygiene and management can be essential in ensuring that your everyday life is not interrupted by menstruation. Menstrual hygiene management a definition the joint monitoring programme jmp of who and unicef, has proposed the following definition of menstrual hygiene management mhm. Remarkable is also that the education by parents concerning reproductive health, sexuality and all related issues is considered almost everywhere as a nogo area.
Use of sanitary pads and washing the genital area are essential practices to keep the menstrual hygiene. This project is addressing the specific issue on menstrual hygiene management of school girls and women from rural nepal. Around the world women have developed their own personal strategies to cope with menstruation, which vary from country to country and depend on economic status, the individuals personal preferences, local traditions and cultural beliefs and education status 1. Menstrual health education resource menstrual hygiene day. Menstrual hygiene management should be part of an expanded definition and agenda for sexual and reproductive health services. Menstrual hygiene and management will directly contribute to the millennium development goal mdg2 on universal education and mdg 3 on gender equality and women empowerment. Women and adolescent girls are using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect. This requires an intersectional approach to menstrual health by exploring how, for instance, income interacts with race, ethnicity, age, and needs across the life cycle winkler, 2019. Oct 14, 2015 the issue of menstrual hygiene is inadequately acknowledged and has not received proper attention. A neglected condition for the achievement of several millennium development goals.
Menstrual hygiene management among adolescent girls in india. While it has previously been underresearched there is now increasing momentum and focus on this important topic. If no pregnancy occurs, the uterus, or womb, sheds its lining. Women and adolescent girls are using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect menstrual blood, that can be changed in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of a menstrual period, using soap and water for washing the body as required, and having access to safe.
Belief, myths and taboos menstruation is a natural process. Menstrual hygiene management mhm is about access to feminine hygiene products to absorb or collect menstrual blood, privacy to change the materials, and access to facilities to dispose of used menstrual management materials. Although this book is specifically for girls of age 914 years, younger or older girls and even boys would find it an interesting and informative read. Effective menstrual hygiene is vital to the health, wellbeing, dignity, empowerment, mobility and productivity of women and girls. Gender teaching resource is designed to help engage men and boys in menstrual hygiene training and projects hand outs questions and answers about menstruation. Menstrual hygiene management mhm refers to management of hygiene associated with the menstrual process. Menstrual hygiene management mhm is defined as women and adolescent girls using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect blood that can be changed in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of the menstruation period, using soap and water for washing the body as required, and having access to facilities to dispose of used menstrual management materials. Menstrual hygiene materials are the products used to catch menstrual flow, such as pads, cloths, tampons or cups. Menstrual hygiene management page 2 policy brief menstrual hygiene management background menstrual hygiene management is an emerging topic of interest in the water, sanitation and hygiene wash sector.
Personal care, hygiene, and grooming a guide to help direct support professionals understand the importance of health maintenance and the professional ethics that apply when providing personal care. Understand why personal hygiene is an important part of good health maintenance. Bringing together examples of good menstrual hygiene. To assess the knowledge and the practices of menstrual hygiene among rural and urban school going adolescent girls. Women and adolescent girls using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect blood that can be changed in privacy as often. In many parts of the country especially in rural areas girls are not prepared and aware about menstruation so they face many difficulties and challenges at home, schools, and work places. Measuring the prevalence and impact of poor menstrual. Despite the irrational taboos associated with it, menstruation is a natural physiological process. These are just a few examples of good practice concerning. An icebreaker to help the group start talking about menstrual hygiene together the importance of breaking the silence on menstrual hygiene the need to consider how open or closed different people are to talking about menstrual hygiene and how creating the. Menstruation is an integral and normal part of human life, indeed of human existence, and menstrual hygiene is fundamental to the dignity and wellbeing of women and girls and an important part of the basic hygiene, sanitation and reproductive health services to which every women and girl has a right. Menstrual hygiene day mhd, mh day in short is an annual awareness day on may 28 to highlight the importance of good menstrual hygiene management mhm.
Measuring the prevalence and impact of poor menstrual hygiene. Adolescence and puberty is a time of intense physical and emotional change for young people between the. As women constitute roughly half of the population in the country, their special sanitation needs related to menstrual hygiene management need to be addressed separately to ensure comprehensive and equitable. Menstrual hygiene management mhm is defined as women and adolescent girls using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or. Menstrual hygiene matters training guide for practitioners menstrual hygiene matters training guide for practitioners. Menstruation, or period, is normal vaginal bleeding that occurs as part of a womans monthly cycle. Design secondary analysis of survey data collected as part of the final followup from a controlled trial of reusable. It is about more than just access to sanitary pads and appropriate toilets though those are important. Objectives to assess the status of menstrual hygiene management mhm among adolescent girls in india to determine unmet needs.
Because at its essence, menstruation is about reproduction. Menstrual hygiene management mhm is one among several challenges and opportunities and it is the focus of these guidelines. Poor menstrual hygiene may cause stigma and ill health, and can lead to school absenteeism and increased school dropout rates. The united nations population fund is bringing together youth activists, policymakers, experts, donors, and practitioners in johannesburg on may 28 menstrual hygiene day to drive action on this fundamental issue of. Policy brief menstrual hygiene management menstrual. Introduction definitions period poverty or menstrual hygiene management, mhm refers to having a lack of access to. The menstrual blood is partly blood and partly tissue from inside the uterus. Women and adolescent girls are using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect menstrual blood, that can be changed in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of a menstrual period, using soap and water for washing the body as required. It ensures that you can continue with your daily routine such as going to school, going to work or doing household chores. It is also about ensuring women and girls live in an environment that values and supports their ability to manage their menstruation with dignity. Menstrual hygiene management among women and adolescent. Menstrual hygiene management mhm practices vary worldwide and depend on the individuals socioeconomic status, personal preferences, local traditions and beliefs, and access to water and sanitation resources. Mhm practices can be particularly unhygienic and inconvenient for girls and women in poorer settings. Menstrual hygiene day 2019 may 28 is menstrual hygiene day mh day.
Attempts to measure menstrual blood loss on the basis of number of pads or tampons used per day or frequency of pad changes are subject to variables such as the individuals fastidiousness, her familiarity or comfort with menstrual hygiene products, and even variation among types and brands of pads or tampons. Menstrual hygiene management among adolescent girls in. Utmost care should be required to protect vagina from. Menstruation and menstrual hygiene management mhm public. Knowledge and practice among adolescent school girls of saoner, nagpur district article pdf available in journal of clinical and diagnostic research 55 november 2010 with. Further, there is limited evidence of menstrual hygiene management in humanitarian settings. Menstrual hygiene day mh day is a global platform that brings together nonprofits, government agencies, the private sector, the media and individuals to promote menstrual hygiene management mhm. Reusable pad training resource is a step by step guide on how to make two common reusable pad designs from locally available materials.
Although its focus is predominantly subsaharan africa, many of the issues raised are relevant to girls in most lowincome countries, although there may be differences in popular practice and beliefs. However, in most parts of the world, it remains a taboo and is rarely talked about house et al. Menstruation is a common phenomenon that generally happens once in a month among women. According to joint monitoring programme jmp of who and unicef, menstrual hygiene management refers to.
Menstrual hygiene refers to personal hygiene during menstruation that would include keeping yourself clean by washing your vulva daily with water, wiping correctly after using the bathroom. Fiftytwo per cent of the female population is of reproductive age at any given time1. Menstrual hygiene management mhm is a major health issue affecting women and girls of reproductive age worldwide. May 28, 2018 menstrual hygiene day mh day is a global platform that brings together nonprofits, government agencies, the private sector, the media and individuals to promote menstrual hygiene management mhm. Unhygienic menstrual practices can affect the health of the girls and there is an increased vulnerability to reproductive tract infections and pelvic inflammatory diseases and other complications. To know the knowledge and menstrual hygiene practices of. The transition into reproductive age for some girls is often met with fear and anxiety due to a lack of knowledge about menstruation and a lack of. Objectives the primary objective was to describe ugandan schoolgirls menstrual hygiene management mhm practices and estimate the prevalence of inadequate mhm. The 28th was selected to acknowledge that 28 days is the average length of the menstrual cycle. Why considering menstrual hygiene is important for all globally, approximately 52% of the female population 26% of the total population is of reproductive age of these women and girls will menstruate each month for between two and seven days in most parts of the world, it remains taboo and is rarely talked about currently. Menstrual hygiene management in schools in south asia. Women and adolescent girls are using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect menstrual blood, that can be changed in privacy. Menstrual hygiene management mhm is an essential aspect of hygiene for women and adolescent girls between menarche and menopause. May 25, 2016 menstrual hygiene management should be part of an expanded definition and agenda for sexual and reproductive health services.
Menarche is the onset of menstruation, the time when a girl has her first menstrual period. Second, to assess the relative contribution of aspects of mhm to health, education and psychosocial outcomes. Unicef and the who define menstrual hygiene management as women and adolescent girls using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect blood that can be changed in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of the menstruation period, using soap and water for washing the body as required, and having access to facilities to. The girls and women will be empowered to advocate for uplifting the existing sanitation facilities and also maintaining hygienic behavior. Conclusions this study was the first to assess the prevalence of mhm consistent with the concept definition. Menstrual hygiene practices, wash access and the risk of. Women and adolescent girls are using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect menstrual blood, that can be changed in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of. Menstrual hygiene day will help to break the silence and build awareness about the definition. Menstrual hygiene management mhm is a problem for adolescent girls in low and middle income countries lmics, particularly when attending school.
Casp manual for specific sources and methods for secondary data. Why is menstrual hygiene and management essential for girls. Unhygienic menstrual practices can affect the health of the girls and there is an increased vulnerability to reproductive tract infections and pelvic inflammatory diseases and other. In the bible22, there is an explicit reference to the. Evaluation toolkit contains tools to help assess menstrual hygiene in the community and to evaluate and monitor the impact of training or project delivery. More than half of women globally are of reproductive age, yet many lack access to menstrual hygiene products or sanitation facilities. The importance of menstrual hygiene management for sexual and. Many programmes and ngos working to improve the situation of women and girls regarding their menstruation use the term menstrual hygiene. Results suggest that when all aspects of menstrual hygiene are considered together, the prevalence is much higher than has previously been reported based on absorbents alone. Menstrual hygiene day will help to break the silence and build awareness about the fundamental role that good menstrual hygiene plays in enabling. Menstrual hygiene is an important issue that affects healthy adolescent girls and premenopausal adult women monthly. Menstrual supplies are other supportive items needed for mhh, such as body and laundry soap, underwear and pain relief items.
Personal care guidelines are also included in this unit. Usaid recognizes menstrual hygiene management mhm as a vital part of the health and dignity of women and girls and provides support to. Menstrual hygiene matters training guide for practitioners. Assessment of knowledge and practice of menstrual hygiene.
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