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A Time for Global Action:

HEALTH IN ACTION A Time for Global Action: Addressing Girls’ Menstrual Hygiene Management Needs in Schools (Click link to access full article)

Marni Sommer1*, Bethany A. Caruso2, Murat Sahin3, Teresa Calderon4, Sue Cavill3, Therese Mahon5, Penelope A. Phillips-Howard6

1 Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America,

2 Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America,

3 UNICEF Headquarters, New York, New York, United States of America,

4 UNICEF Bolivia, La Paz, Bolivia,

5 WaterAid, London, United Kingdom,

6 Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, United Kingdom

4 ms2778@columbia.edu

Summary Points

• There is an absence of guidance, facilities, and materials for schoolgirls to manage their menstruation in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

• Formative evidence has raised awareness that poor menstrual hygiene management (MHM) contributes to inequity, increasing exposure to transactional sex to obtain sani- tary items, with some evidence of an effect on school indicators and with repercussions for sexual, reproductive, and general health throughout the life course.

• Despite increasing evidence and interest in taking action to improve school conditions for girls, there has not been a systematic mapping of MHM priorities or coordination of relevant sectors and disciplines to catalyze change, with a need to develop country-level expertise.

• Columbia University and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) convened members of academia, nongovernmental organizations, the UN, donor agencies, the pri- vate sector, and social entrepreneurial groups in October 2014 (“MHM in Ten”) to iden- tify key public health issues requiring prioritization, coordination, and investment by 2024.

• Five key priorities were identified to guide global, national, and local action.

 

 

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Rachel Starkey
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