Public perception of drinking water safety in South Africa 2002-2009: a repeated cross-sectional study

Awareness Level of Business Students regarding Drinking Water Safety and Associated Adulteration Accidents: A Multinomial Logistic Regression Approach

The industrialization of metropolis urban areas with dry and steppe climates raise substantial environmental contamination, particularly in the water domain. This research investigated the awareness levels of business students toward drinking water quality and safety. We further explored the knowledge of the business students regarding drinking water issues and remedies. Eighty-four percent of respondents were happy with the quality of their drinking water, according to the findings. Approximately 66% of respondents paid special or rather high attention to drinking water quality and contamination incidents, particularly regarding possible harm to the human body and health, impact scope, and accident reasons. Few respondents reported to the health department or phoned the water safety department; 47.5% of respondents resolved drinking water issues independently. Age and education level did not play a significant role in the degree of public satisfaction with water quality or the public's perception of water pollution incidents; however, business students in Samundri were more satisfied with their drinking water quality, and residents of Faisalabad Sadar were more aware of drinking water contamination incidents than residents in areas without such a network. Respondents with higher levels of education were more aware of water quality and pollution incidents than those with lower levels of education. The steppe climate, diverse human activities, and industrialization led to water pollution. The current research findings may provide fundamental data for efficient water management in the most populated and industrialized regions.

The Perception of Water Contamination and Risky Consumption in El Salvador from a Community Clinical Psychology Perspective

This study was carried out as part of the international cooperation project “Agua Futura” for the improvement of water resource management and the promotion of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) behaviors in rural communities of Central America. Given the relevant healthcare problem of water pollution, especially in El Salvador, the aim was to detect some key factors affecting the perception of water contamination and its risky consumption from a community clinical psychological perspective. Ninety rural inhabitants of El Salvador were administered a structured interview exploring their perceptions about water quality and the impact of water consumption on health. Data were analyzed through a computer-aided thematic analysis—complemented by a qualitative analysis—allowing the detection of sense-making processes based on lexical variability. Different themes were identified with regard to the perception of water quality (i.e., mistrust, danger, and safety) and the beliefs about the impact of water consumption on health (i.e., rationalization, denial, awareness, displacement, and isolation of affect). The results showed heterogeneous perspectives about water quality and sanitation. However, the perceived negative impact of water consumption on health was mostly denied or minimized through massive distortions. Overall, the study highlights the role of defensive patterns in facing issues of water contamination, which may prevent the community from adopting healthy behaviors and adequate water management behaviors.

An Analysis of Household Perceptions of Water Costs across the United States: A Survey Based Approach

Research analyzing perceptions of water services has focused on water quality, water safety, and the propensity to consume water from different sources. It has not assessed perceptions of water costs. To address this knowledge gap, this study collected nationally representative survey data from households in the United States about water issues and incorporated these data into logistic regression models. In doing so, our study advances the water and public policy literature in three ways. One, it addresses the need for household resolution information about water issues given the absence of data at this scale in the United States. Two, it creates and utilizes one-of-a-kind survey data to understand the perceptions of household water bills and the drivers of these perceptions. Three, we assess the impact of proposed solutions to improve water affordability on household perceptions of water costs. Model results indicate low-income and households in underrepresented groups were more likely to perceive their water bills to be too high. The perception of water costs also varied geographically. From a policy perspective, model results indicate utilities can positively affect perceptions of water bills via the frequency of water billing and provision of payment assistance programs.

Predicting factors of public awareness and perception about the quality, safety of drinking water, and pollution incidents

Public perception of drinking water quality and safety results from the interaction of multiple factors, including the public engagement, which requires sufficient knowledge and awareness. This issue has yet to be addressed in Algeria. This study investigated the residents' perception and awareness about the drinking water quality, safety, and water pollution events. A survey-based cross-sectional study was conducted amongst citizens living in the province of Biskra. Multinomial regression analysis was used to identify the predicted public perception factors about drinking water-related issues. Regardless of the degree of public trust in the drinking water sources, the main drinking water source reported by the participants was tank water (43.3%) followed by tap water (32%). Water quality standards are a measure of the condition of water relative to the contaminants. Water consumption profiles gave priority attention to taste (48.7%), odour (35%), appearance (34.7%), and colour (32%), reflecting a low level of knowledge about the water quality standards. Most of the residents (55.7%) reported a deficient communication about the preventive measures to protect public health. The higher level of education showed a statistically significant impact in discriminating between those who felt very satisfied and dissatisfied participants with the drinking water quality and those who felt between satisfied and dissatisfied (P = 0.023, P = 0.034, respectively). Additionally, education level had a statistically significant role in differentiating trust levels in drinking water quality between two groups, those belonging to either confident or relatively confident and the group of extremely worried respondents, with P = 0.000 and P = 0.000, respectively. Interviewed respondents with certain education levels showed higher trust in the safety of drinking water when compared to those with lower education levels. Gender had a significant role in differentiating the group of respondents who were relatively confident from those who were extremely worried (P = 0.016). The public knowledge about the standards of water quality, safety, and the pollution-related issues remains relatively low. This study is of interest to policy makers and public health authorities who implement actions for water contamination prevention and public health protection. These findings could have national implications and are also applicable, in general context, particularly in low and middle-income countries.

Consumer Preference and Quality of Sachet Water Sold and Consumed in the Sunyani Municipality of Ghana

Good quality water is odourless, colourless, and free from faecal pollution, and a satisfactory safe supply must be made available to consumers. The study assessed consumer preference and quality of sachet water sold and consumed in the Sunyani Municipality of Ghana. A cross-sectional study design was used, and data were collected using a structured questionnaire from a sample size of 500 respondents. A total of twenty (20) samples of sachet water commonly sold and consumed in the Sunyani Municipality were also collected and analyzed for bacteriological and physicochemical parameters. Out of these 20 samples, 10 samples of sachet water were collected from the production site and the other 10 samples from the market site. Results showed that respondents' choice of sachet water was based on several indicators. While 70% (350/500) of consumers indicated that sachet water had taste, 58% (290/500) of them were not enthused when the water had colour. Using smell as an indicator, 71% of consumers have had an experience with sachet water smell being questionable. Water taste (p < 0.001), colour of water (p < 0.001), smell (p < 0.001), and increase in cost (p < 0.001) were found as determinants of consumer preference. Consumers who said the colour of water informed their decision when buying sachet water were seven times more likely to have a preference for a particular brand (OR 7.057, CI: 4.474-11.133). Those who checked for expiry dates when buying water (OR 4.871, CI: 3.110-7.628) and those who looked out for Food and Drugs Authority stamp (OR 4.433, CI: 2.806-7.003) were both four times more likely to have a preference for a particular brand. Water quality tests also indicated that 30% of all water samples collected from the production site were contaminated with total coliforms and 50% of sachet water samples collected from the markets were also contaminated with coliforms. The same brands of sachet water that contained total coliforms from the production site were the same brands that contained total coliforms selected from the market. From this study, only total coliforms other than Escherichia coli were detected in the water samples analyzed. It was observed that the evaluated physicochemical parameters of the water analyzed were within the accepted WHO limits. It is recommended that consumers be educated about the indicators to look out for when buying sachet water and, also, that regulatory bodies be empowered to ban the sale of unwholesome brands of sachet water on the market.

'We Are Drinking Diseases': Perception of Water Insecurity and Emotional Distress in Urban Slums in Accra, Ghana

Water security is critical to the health and well-being of people around the world, especially among populations experiencing water stresses and rapid urbanization in low- to middle-income countries (LMICs). Recent research suggests water insecurity is associated with negative mental health outcomes. Despite global improvement in access to safe water across the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that access to safe water in urban areas has not changed significantly or has stagnated in certain countries. In most African cities, entrepreneurial water vendors have stepped up to fill supply gaps in the formal delivery system by selling vended water. As part of a larger research program that aims to assess and analyze public perceptions around vended water, this paper explores the links connecting water insecurity and emotional distress among urban slum dwellers who mostly use vended water in Accra, Ghana. We used a parallel mixed-methods approach. Our quantitative results show that water-insecure households (OR = 2.23, p = 0.01) were more likely to report emotional distresses compared to water-secure households. However, households with improved sanitation (OR = 0.28, p = 0.01) and those willing to participate for improved water and sanitation (OR = 0.28, p = 0.01) were less likely to report emotional distress. Our qualitative results offered support for the quantitative results, as participants not only hold various perceptions regarding the safety and quality of vended water but expressed emotional distresses such as fear of contamination, discomfort, worry over arbitrary change in prices, and anxiety. The implications of the results for policy and practice, specifically to ensuring access to safe water, are discussed.

Selecting Household Water Treatment Options on the Basis of World Health Organization Performance Testing Protocols

The World Health Organization's International Scheme to Evaluate Household Water Treatment Technologies serves to benchmark microbiological performance of existing and novel technologies and processes for small-scale drinking water treatment according to a tiered system. There is widespread uncertainty around which tiers of performance are most appropriate for technology selection and recommendation in humanitarian response or for routine safe water programming. We used quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) to evaluate attributable reductions in diarrheal disease burden associated with water treatment technologies meeting the three tiers of performance under this Scheme, across a range of conditions. According to mean estimates and under most modeling conditions, potential health gains attributable to microbiologically improved drinking water are realized at the middle tier of performance: "comprehensive protection: high pathogen removal (★★)" for each reference pathogen. The highest tier of performance may yield additional marginal health gains where untreated water is especially contaminated and where adherence is 100%. Our results highlight that health gains from improved efficacy of household water treatment technology remain marginal when adherence is less than 90%. While selection of water treatment technologies that meet minimum WHO efficacy recommendations for comprehensive protection against waterborne pathogens is critical, additional criteria for technology choice and recommendation should focus on potential for correct, consistent, and sustained use.

Water Demand Framework and Water Development: The Case of China

Water resources management is increasingly important for sustainable economic and social development. A coherent division of the development stages is of primary importance for selecting and implementing related water resource management strategies. Using evolving supply–demand relationships, this paper proposes a framework that considers water development stages to present a series of dynamic relationships between water demand changes and overall economic development. The framework is applied to China to advance the understanding of how demand evolves at different stages of water resources development under specific socioeconomic circumstances, and of strategic choices in general. The case of China explains how water resources management has gradually improved during distinct socioeconomic development stages. It illustrates the varieties and effectiveness of water policies made to adapt to changing demand over the course of socioeconomic development. The framework can be potentially applied to other countries or regions to identify the development stage in order to select proper water management strategies.

Perception of drinking water safety and factors influencing acceptance and sustainability of a water quality intervention in rural southern India

BACKGROUND

Acceptance and long-term sustainability of water quality interventions are pivotal to realizing continued health benefits. However, there is limited research attempting to understand the factors that influence compliance to or adoption of such interventions.

METHODS

Eight focus group discussions with parents of young children--including compliant and not compliant households participating in an intervention study, and three key-informant interviews with village headmen were conducted between April and May 2014 to understand perceptions on the effects of unsafe water on health, household drinking water treatment practices, and the factors influencing acceptance and sustainability of an ongoing water quality intervention in a rural population of southern India.

RESULTS

The ability to recognize health benefits from the intervention, ease of access to water distribution centers and the willingness to pay for intervention maintenance were factors facilitating acceptance and sustainability of the water quality intervention. On the other hand, faulty perceptions on water treatment, lack of knowledge about health hazards associated with drinking unsafe water, false sense of protection from locally available water, resistance to change in taste or odor of water and a lack of support from male members of the household were important factors impeding acceptance and long term use of the intervention.

CONCLUSION

This study highlights the need to effectively involve communities at important stages of implementation for long term success of water quality interventions. Timely research on the factors influencing uptake of water quality interventions prior to implementation will ensure greater acceptance and sustainability of such interventions in low income settings.

Factors affecting the survival probability of becoming a centenarian for those aged 70, based on the human mortality database: income, health expenditure, telephone, and sanitation

Background

What are the factors that affect the survival probability of becoming a centenarian for those aged 70? Do the factors include income, health expenditure, the use of mobile telephones, or sanitation? The survival probability of becoming a centenarian (SPBC) is defined as an estimate of the production of centenarians by a population. The SPBC (70) is the survival probability of becoming a centenarian for those aged 70. This study estimates the associations between the SPBC (70), and the gross national income, health expenditure, telecommunications, and sanitation facilities in 32 countries.

Methods

The socioeconomic indicators for this study were obtained from the database of the United Nations Development Programme. In addition, the data for the analysis of centenarians in 32 countries were obtained from the Human Mortality Database, which is maintained by the Department of Demography at the University of California, Berkeley, USA, and the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock, Germany. Associations between socioeconomic indicators and SPBC (70) were assessed using Pearson’s correlation coefficients and multiple regression models.

Results

Significant positive correlations were found between the SPBC (70), and the socioeconomic factors of gross national income (GNI), public expenditure on health as a percentage of gross domestic product (PEHGDP), fixed and mobile telephone subscribers (FMTS) as the standard of living, and improved sanitation facilities (ISF). Overall, the SPBC (70) of female and male predictors were used, in order to form a model production of centenarians, with higher GNI and PEHGDP, as well as higher FMTS and ISF as the socioeconomic factors (R²= 0.422, P< 0.001).

Conclusions

The socioeconomic level in all 32 countries appears to have an important latent effect on the production of centenarians in both females and males. This study has identified the following four important aspects of socioeconomic indicators in the survival probability of becoming a centenarian for those aged 70: higher overall economic development level, public expenditure on health, mobile telephone subscribers as the standard of living, and the use of improved sanitation facilities for healthy aging. Thus, the socioeconomic level seems to affect an important on the survival probability of becoming a centenarian.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2318-14-113) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Investigating public perceptions and knowledge translation priorities to improve water safety for residents with private water supplies: a cross-sectional study in Newfoundland and Labrador

Background

The first objective of this study was to investigate the public perceptions of private water and alternative sources with respect to safety, quality, testing and treatment in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL), Canada. The second objective was to provide public health practitioners with recommendations for improving knowledge translation (KT) efforts in NL, based on assessments of respondents’ perceived information needs and preferred KT methods.

Methods

A cross-sectional telephone survey of 618 households with private water supplies was conducted in March-April, 2007. Questions pertained to respondents’ perceptions of their tap water, water concerns, alternative water use, well characteristics, and water testing behaviours.

Results

Approximately 94% of households were supplied by private wells (50% drilled and 50% dug wells), while 6% obtained water from roadside ponds, rivers or springs (RPRS). While 85% rated their water quality highly, 55% nevertheless had concerns about its overall safety. Approximately 11% of respondents never tested their water, and of the 89% that had, 80% tested at frequencies below provincial recommendations for bacterial testing. More than one-third of respondents reported treating their water in the home, and 78% employed active carbon filtration methods. Respondents wanted more information on testing options and advice on effective treatment methods. Targeted advertising through television, flyers/brochures and/or radio is recommended as a first step to increase awareness. More active KT methods involving key stakeholders may be most effective in improving testing and treatment behaviour.

Conclusions

The results presented here can assist public health practitioners in tailoring current KT initiatives to influence well owner stewardship behaviour.