- Dr Mark Schaller visiting the Hygiene Centre

Dr. Mark Schaller, a Professor of Psychology at University of British Columbia in Canada, will be visiting the Hygiene Centre at the end of September. Mark's research focuses on how aspects of our cognition and culture can function to prevent the spread of infection. He will be giving a talk on Tuesday the 23rd of September from 4 -5.30 pm in Room 101, 49 Bedford Square, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Title: Infectious Disease, Adaptive Cognition, and the Creation of Culture

Summary: Infectious diseases have posed a threat to human (and pre-human) fitness for a long time. Many aspects of human cognition and behaviour can be characterized as adaptive responses to this threat. Dr Schaller will discuss consequences of this for understanding contemporary social cognition and social relations (with a special emphasis on prejudice and discrimination). He will also discuss further consequences that are reflected in human culture, paying particular attention to the origins of cross-cultural differences.

- Read about the Schmidt Chalabi Genser computer simulation model on occurrence of infections

Wolf-Peter Schmidt with Zaid Chalabi and Bernd Genser developed a computer simulation model that allows simulating the occurrence of common recurrent infections such as diarrhoea and respiratory infections taking into account a wide range of epidemiological characteristics. The model allows for the exploration of different disease surveillance methods, disease definitions and statistical methods. The model is described in a paper soon to be published in the Journal Epidemiology & Infection.

- International Rescue Committee's Environmental Health Conference, August 2008

Adam Biran took part in discussions with delegates about opportunities for innovation in hygiene promotion interventions. Read the report HERE.

- George Macdonald Medal

Professor Sandy Cairncross has been awarded the prestigious George Macdonald Medal in recognition of his outstanding research leading to improvement of health in tropical countries

- Adam Biran at the 6th Annual Environmental Health Conference

Adam Biran participated in the International Rescue Committee's 6th Annual Environmental Health Conference in Dar Es Salaam where he gave introductory sessions on social marketing and formative research in hygiene promotion.

- Read Jeroen Ensink’s new article on ‘Raw wastewater use in agriculture: risk versus benefits’

To read the article, click HERE.

- Toolkit for Schools

The Hygiene Centre has made a new Toolkit for Schools availble for download. The Toolkit includes:

• A document outlining the background and rationale for the tools

• A document containing a description of all tool protocols

• A set of forms for use during data collection
  
• A set of pictures for use in one of the tools

To download the new toolkit, click HERE.

- Warning: Habits May be Good for You

Val Curtis' work with the Public Private Partnership in Hand Washing was given prominence in the New York Times on the 13th July following a meeting with the World Bank in America. The article is in two parts, view part 1 HERE, view part 2 HERE.

- Workshop on control and prevention of cholera and diarrhoeal disease 13-17 May 2008

UNICEF and WHO have sponsored a workshop on the control and prevention of cholera and diarrhoeal disease, which took place from the 13-17 May 2008 in Dakar, Senegal. Jeroen Ensink from the LSHTM Environmental Health Group attended. He has also recently been promoted to lecturer.

- SPARK Workshop on Habit and Routine

Robert Aunger, Valerie Curtis and Gaby Judah hosted a SPARK Workshop on Habit and Routine on 29-30 May. Despite the fact that as many as half of our daily behaviours are habitual, including many with a direct impact on health, there has been surprisingly little work in the area. The workshop aimed to bring together people working on habit and routine, to find out what has already been established, and what questions remain. As well as hearing presentations from the leaders in the field, the participants worked on group tasks to develop working definitions of key concepts, to discuss how routines and habits are formed, and how they can be changed in order to promote healthy behaviour.

The workshop hosted speakers and participants approaching the topic from fields of social psychology, neuroscience, addiction, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, developmental psychology, computer modelling, animal behaviour, robotics and Unilever consumer research. The workshop was a great success, with participants leaving with a much broader understanding of habit than they arrived with. Professor Wendy Wood from Duke University called the workshop the 'founding meeting for the science of habit'.

Sanlexicon is an open source web platform designed to promote a common understanding of technical terms related to all aspects of sanitation and excreta management (technical, financial, institutional, social). Terms can be accessed through the search function or via categories.

-ROSA Project Progress

Jeroen Ensink attended a ROSA project progress meeting in Arba Minch from 14 to 21 April. For details of the EU FP6 funded project click HERE

- Professor Sally Bloomfield on MRSA infections

In an April press release from the Hygiene Centre Professor Sally Bloomfield put out the warning that, if we are ever to get the problem of MRSA infections in hospitals under control, then we also have to tackle it at source – in the home and community.

This warning came in support of recently-voiced concerns about the effectiveness of the current UK hospital ‘deep cleaning” programme’. Dr. Jodi Lindsay, an expert in infectious diseases, told the BBC on Sat 28 March, "The reason the deep cleaning programme is not going to work is that MRSA is carried by people and as soon as you deep clean a hospital, if you let people back into it again, you're going to have the same MRSA problem."

Professor Sally Bloomfield, said: ‘This means that if we are to get MRSA under control, we have to stop it circulating in the home and community. If we can reduce the number of people carrying MRSA as part of their normal body flora, we can limit the numbers of “carriers” entering hospital as patients – who then either get an MRSA infection themselves, or pass it on to other patients.

To read more of Sally's article please click HERE

- Lancet Series on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

The Lancet, which on World Water Day published a hard-hitting editorial on sanitation, has also decided to publish a series of five articles on water, sanitation and hygiene and hygiene centre staff will be playing an active role in their preparation. The process will kick off with a stakeholders' meeting hosted by the HC, on April 21.

- Workshop to determine experimental interventions for Hygiene Wired - a study of handwashing in public washrooms

On 26th March, Robert Aunger hosted a workshop in the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine to determine which interventions should be used in Hygiene Wired, an ESRC-funded study of handwashing in public washrooms. Health psychologists from around the country, and representatives from Lifebuoy and Unilever, met to discuss which psychological constructs should be tested against each other in this study, which aims to determine the most effective way to encourage people to wash their hands with soap.

Val Curtis presented the Hygiene Centre's best knowledge about how to increase handwashing with soap. Combining these ideas with current behaviour change theories, the participants came up with many creative suggestions for potential messages to be screened, and the best of these will be selected to be used as interventions.

-Global Sanitation Fund

Prof Sandy Cairncross has been elected Chair of the Advisory Committee of the Global Sanitation Fund. (for details of the GSF, see www.wsscc.org)

Sandy Cairncross' paper on the health impact of a sanitation project in Salvador Da Bahia, Brazil was shortlisted for Lancet Paper of the Year 2007. He is also assisting in coordinating a series of 5 papers on WSH to be published in 2009 in the Lancet.

- Adam Biran's Book Review of 'Hygiene Promotion a Practical Manual for Relief and Development' was published in 'Waterlines', Jan; 27 (1) 88-89.

- Raising awareness of the importance of home hygiene in preventing the spread of infection – IFH Press activity December 2007

During the second half of December 2007, the International Scientific Forum, in collaboration with the Hygiene Centre, issued 2 press releases. The first which featured the idea “If you don't want to fall ill this Christmas, then share a festive kiss but don't shake hands” highlighted the importance of hygiene in preventing the spread of colds and flu in the home and community. The second, which focused on reducing the spread of norovirus, highlighted the concept that “If the current outbreak of norovirus is to be contained before it spreads into offices and schools opening up for the New Year, it needs to be tackled at source – in the home. These releases stimulated considerable media coverage (76 articles in total), not only in the UK (The Times, Telegraph and Daily Mail) but also in Europe, the US, and as far a field as India and elsewhere. The extensive response illustrates the current high level of public interest in infectious diseases and hygiene, and the growing concerns about the need for better hygiene to control the spread diseases such as norovirus, influenza, MRSA and C. difficile, not only in hospitals but also in the home and community. It suggests that the current “climate of concern” offers significant opportunities for hygiene promotion through the media in the developed as well as the developing world.

- Working Group on Global Consultation on Pandemic Disease Control Strategies’ expert advisor Val Curtis

Val Curtis attended the Working Group on Global Consultation on Pandemic Disease Control Strategies at WHO Geneva 31st Jan and 1st Feb as the expert advisor on control in the community. This meeting was held to prepare global guidance on disease control strategies in the event of a global influenza pandemic. Val presented various options to the meeting including handwashing

- Jeroen Ensink in China.

Jeroen Ensink visited China in January for a SAFIR project meeting. Whilst there he was in talks with the Chinese Agricultural University (CAU) on the use of wastewater in agriculture.

- African Sanitation Ministerial Conference and Sanitation Behaviour Change workshop

Mimi Jenkins, Beth Scott and Steven Sugden will be presenting at Afrisan +5 in Durban. This is the Africa Sanitation Ministerial Conference to be held on, 18-20 February 08

Mimi Jenkins & Beth Scott will be attending a two day workshop (21-22 February 08) on Sanitation Behaviour Change hosted by WSP and funded by the Gates Foundation.

- ‘How to Get Sanitation out of its Pit’

Beth Scott presenting at the seminar ‘How to Get Sanitation Out of its Pit: Alternative policy and practice directions for the International Year of Sanitation’ hosted by Oxford Centre for Water Research (OCWR) and St Hilda's College, University of Oxford on Friday 22 February 2008

- Jeroen Ensink visited Hanoi in December to investigate the association between wastewater grown fish and vegetables and cholera. This work was done in close association with Copenhagen University.

- Read Jeroen Ensink's publication on 'Wastewater-irrigated vegetables' published in the December issue of the Journal of Tropical Medicine and International Health COMING SOON!

- Water and Sanitation Archive to be made available

The Environmental Health Group's collection of reports, plans, photographs and other publications is to be incorporated into the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine's archive. The Project, together with an exhibition on Sanitation to be displayed in the School's public Library, will kick off the Hygiene Centre's activities for the International Year of Sanitation 2008. You will soon see an IYS 2008 webpage appear on www.HygieneCentral.org.uk and this will be updated regularly with interesting items unearthed from the archives.

- Publication of hand hygiene review by Sally Bloomfield et al in the December issue of the American Journal of Infection Control

The effectiveness of hand hygiene procedures in reducing the risks of infections in home and community settings including handwashing and alcohol-based hand sanitizers
Sally F. Bloomfield, Allison E. Aiello, Barry Cookson, Carol O'Boyle , Elaine L. Larson

The International Scientific Forum on Home Hygiene has published a new review which will provide support for those who work at the interface between theory and practice, particularly those who are involved in developing hygiene practice policies for the home and community, by providing a practical framework for hand hygiene practice together with a comprehensive review of the evidence base. It reviews the evidence base related to the impact of hand hygiene in reducing transmission of infectious disease in the home and community in Europe and North America and evaluates the use of alcohol-based hygiene procedures as an alternative to, or in conjunction with, handwashing.

American Journal of Infection Control 2007, 35, S27-S64

- Val Curtis’ interviews on Radio 4 and Radio London on hygiene and disgust

Val Curtis appeared on Radio 4, December 26th on the programme 'Frontiers' and talked on the science of disgust. She was also interviewed by Vanessa Phelps on Radio London, January 16th, about whether we should worry about hygiene. Additionally, an ‘Off the Page' discussion about hygiene and disgust was broadcast on Wednesday 9th of January 2008 at 13:30-14:00 Repeated: Sunday 13 January 2008 23:00-23:30). This is available to listen to HERE.