Water (In)Accessibility, Healthcare Delivery, and Patients' Health Outcomes in Ghana: Perspectives from the Yendi Hospital.
Background: Access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services is internationally recognized as a fundamental human right and an essential determinant of health. Yet, many healthcare facilities in sub-Saharan Africa face persistent WASH deficits, undermining safe and effective care delivery. A...
| Published in: | Nursing Reports Vol. 15; no. 12; pp. 418 - 435 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
| Format: | pictorial research tables/charts Journal Article |
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MDPI
Dec2025
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| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=190529957&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 190529957 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 2039439X EGNT jtl: Nursing Reports issn: 2039439X maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Dec2025 vid: 15 iid: 12 pid: 97109 pub: MDPI artinfo: ui: 190529957 190529957 190529957 10.3390/nursrep15120418 190529957 ppf: 418 ppct: 17 formats: fmt: – @attributes: type: T – @attributes: type: P tig: atl: Water (In)Accessibility, Healthcare Delivery, and Patients' Health Outcomes in Ghana: Perspectives from the Yendi Hospital. aug: au: Kwame, Abukari Siiba, Alhassan Apatinga, Gervin A. Owusu, Francis Kwaku affil: College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan, Prince Albert Campus, Prince Albert, SK S6V 4E4, Canada sug: subj: Health Care Delivery Outcomes (Health Care) Water Supply Evaluation Hospitals, Public Ghana Patient Attitudes Professional-Patient Relations Referral and Consultation Ghana Human Male Female Adolescence Adult Middle Age Qualitative Studies Phenomenology Ethnographic Research Semi-Structured Interview Focus Groups Open-Ended Questionnaires Interview Guides Audiorecording Purposive Sample Nursing Staff, Hospital Caregivers Thematic Analysis Coding Descriptive Statistics Patient Rights Infection Control Adolescent: 13-18 years Adult: 19-44 years Middle Aged: 45-64 years Male Female ab: Background: Access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services is internationally recognized as a fundamental human right and an essential determinant of health. Yet, many healthcare facilities in sub-Saharan Africa face persistent WASH deficits, undermining safe and effective care delivery. Aim: To explore how water (in)accessibility influences patient healthcare experiences and patient–provider relationships in Yendi Hospital, a major referral facility in northern Ghana. Methods: Using a qualitative design, we gathered data from patients (n = 21), caregivers (n = 11), and nurses (n = 11) through in-depth interviews, participant observation, and a focus group to document their lived experiences and perceptions. We transcribed and inductively coded the data for thematic analysis. Results: Our key findings reveal that water inaccessibility is not solely an infrastructural issue but also a pervasive challenge with profound implications for care delivery. Patients and caregivers often leave the hospital to bathe at home, resulting in missed ward rounds, delayed reviews, and/or refusal of admission. Nurses described how water inaccessibility disrupted clinical routines and strained relationships with patients and caregivers. These dynamics eroded trust, rapport, and professional morale, while exacerbating inequities in healthcare access and outcomes. Conclusions: This study underscores that addressing water challenges in the hospital is imperative not only for infection control but also for fostering equity, patient rights, and institutional resilience. We argue that policy interventions to strengthen WASH systems are urgently required to advance progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 6. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: pictorial research tables/charts Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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