Hand-washing Practice, Barriers, and Associated Factors among Jordanian Students in Public and Private Schools: A Cross-sectional Study

Background: Hand washing with soap and neat running water is a proven infection control component in the school setting that limits the transmission of numerous communicable diseases. In Jordanian schools, students are at a high risk of contracting diseases and facing significant barriers to education because of the limited access to basic, functioning, and dignified sanitation facilities in schools. Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the steps of hand-washing practices in detail, and identify the hand-washing barriers among Jordanian students aged 9-15 years in public and private schools in Amman governorate. Methods: This is a correlational cross-sectional study. Participants were school students aged between 9 years and 15 years from Amman governorate. The sample was drawn based on a multistage stratified random sampling technique to guarantee random and equal selection of participants. Data was collected using the core questions and indicators developed by WHO and UNICEF for monitoring hygiene in schools, hand-washing barriers self-reported questionnaire, and WHO hand-washing checklist. Descriptive, Pearson r correlation, independent t-test, and hierarchical linear regression analysis were used in our study. Results: In this study, a total of 288 students have a moderate level of hand-washing practice. Inferential statistics revealed that the five hand-washing barriers identified in this study have a negative correlation with hand-washing scores (p