In 2011, Kansas City-based nonprofit Medical Missions Foundation partnered with UNICEF to incorporate handwashing instruction on their medical mission in Ouelessebougou, Mali. A similar handwashing component will be incorporated in the upcoming January 2012 mission as well.
Last year, Medical Missions Foundation volunteers and Kansas City musicians Barclay Martin and Mark Lowrey of the Barclay Martin Ensemble worked with thousands of children to teach basic handwashing techniques through skits and songs. UNICEF provided the wash basins and the Barclay Martin Ensemble have collected donations throughout this past year to fund “WASH Club” ambassadors at 18 schools. Each school has a designated lead boy and girl ambassador who are responsible for making sure there is soap and fresh water and that all the children wash their hands throughout the day. The schools compete for prizes for the healthiest class.
The WASH Club, which is comprised of ambassadors from each of the 18 schools, has even started a WASH Cup soccer tournament. This is a great way to continue to put health and hygiene in a prominent place and the final game will even include educational interludes about handwashing geared towards the adults in the audience. The tournament started November 18 and the championship game will be played in January when the Medical Missions Foundation is there conducting a medical mission. In addition to clinics and surgeries, this year 7,000 children will be taught about handwashing through Medical Missions Foundation volunteers.
According to the Center for Disease Control, diarrhea and respiratory infections remain leading killers of young children in the developing world and claim approximately 3.5 million young lives each year. Studies have shown that effective handwashing decreases these diseases substantially. UNICEF estimates that by making handwashing a social norm, respitory infections can be reduced by 23% and diarrheal diseases by almost half. Hand-washing with soap prevents disease in a more straightforward and cost-effective way than any single vaccine.
Click here to watch a video from last year's Mali mission.
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