Clean hands, safe sanitation, and quality care saves lives
Through climate-smart WASH and life-saving medical equipment, rural hospitals in Cambodia are reducing infections and giving vulnerable newborns their best chance to survive and thrive
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Takeo province – “I’m so happy,” says 24-year-old Chhen Sreynich through tears.
She’s spent the past few anxious days at the neonatal care unit of Kirivong Referral Hospital, a facility that serves remote populations near the Cambodian border with Vietnam. Her daughter, Youi, is recovering from life-threating complications that required urgent oxygen therapy after she was born pre-term.
“Without this help, my baby could’ve died.”
For babies like Youi who need help to breathe on their own, a lack of oxygen during the first minute after birth can mean the difference between life and death. Before the hospital received UNICEF-supported oxygen therapy equipment, health staff were unable to provide this life-saving care on-site and on-time. Families were forced to travel 40 kilometres to another hospital, an expensive journey many simply couldn’t afford. For some babies, that extra time meant help came too late.
“If we had to transfer to another hospital, we would spend a lot of money and time,” says Sreynich. “I’d be worried that we wouldn’t be able to help the baby.”
Now, thanks to the new neonatal care unit (NCU), those critical minutes are no longer lost.
"I feel happy because we could quickly help her,” says Dr Heng Socheat, an obstetrician and gynecologist (OB-GYN) who oversees the hospital’s UNICEF-supported NCU. “For a baby, there’s a golden minute. If we couldn’t save them on time, it was devastating for us. There’s been a drastic change now that we have the equipment because we are able to care for and rescue the babies on time, and their parents are happy that we can save their children.”
Today, baby Youi is sleeping peacefully next to a row of tiny newborns, each with their own stories to tell. The NCU is now stocked with essential medical equipment to treat a range of neonatal conditions, including jaundice, respiratory distress, sepsis and infections, which can become serious and even lead to death if left untreated. Phototherapy machines treating babies with neonatal jaundice give the room a blue, soothing glow.
In Cambodia, 8 out of 1,000 babies die within their first 28 days of life, with most deaths occurring in rural areas. Funded by the Republic of Korea, UNICEF’s innovative and comprehensive support to district hospitals in Cambodia aims to close the gap in accessibility and quality of healthcare between urban and rural areas, helping more babies survive and thrive.
An essential part of this support to improve rural healthcare delivery includes upgrading water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities, which is crucial for preventing infection and ensuring children and newborns can access quality health services in a safe and clean environment. Across Cambodia, only 38 per cent of healthcare facilities have access to a reliable year-round water supply for all purposes, including drinking water, while only 7 per cent have access to basic sanitation services.1
At Kirivong Referral Hospital, WASH support includes upgraded bathrooms and toilets that are inclusive and separated by sex, handwashing stations, a solar-powered hot water system for the delivery room, and even a sink dedicated to washing newborns. One of the most significant upgrades is the nature-based constructed wetlands that treat the hospital’s wastewater.
“Before, we didn’t have a system to filter the wastewater, which pollutes the environment and affects the people living around here,” says Dr Socheat. The polluted wastewater generated by the hospital used to flow into the nearby lake, risking the spread of disease into the community. During the rainy season, the hospital environment would also become a breeding ground for infection when the facility was flooded by a mix of stormwater and overflowing wastewater from septic tanks.
Constructed wetlands are nature-based solutions that make use of the natural purification processes of vegetation, soil and microbes to remove toxic contaminants from wastewater. In healthcare settings, it’s a safe, climate-smart system to protect patients and the surrounding community.
Dr Socheat adds that the sinks installed around the facility, including the delivery room and NCU, make it easier for healthcare staff to practice proper hand hygiene – a simple yet lifesaving intervention to prevent infection, protect the most vulnerable patients like newborns, and stop the spread of bacteria within and outside the hospital.
“It’s much more convenient now because there is a handwashing sink in the NCU room,” she says. “It’s an alert to remind us that we need to clean our hands, that clean hands save lives. It makes us all remember that the very first thing we need to do is clean our hands, so we protect our patients and those around us.”
With funding from the Republic of Korea, three rural hospitals have been equipped with advanced medical technology, including equipment to support oxygen therapy, and improved, climate-smart WASH facilities. In 2025, a total of six healthcare facilities (four referral hospitals) will be equipped with solar power systems to provide clean, alternative energy to run energy-efficient ceiling and wall fans, LED lighting, and upgraded electrical cabling.
This comprehensive approach aims to enhance hospitals' capacity to care for their tiniest, most vulnerable patients, improve rural healthcare delivery, reduce infections, and ensure facilities are climate-smart for the future.
Through clean hands, safe sanitation, and the right care at the right time, children and newborns are getting the care they need to thrive.
“I am happy and proud to be able to save the lives of children and infants,” says Dr Socheat. “All of this work is to ensure they will live quality lives and reach their potential. Because children are the future who can shape society for the better.”
1 National assessment of water, sanitation and hygiene in public healthcare facilities in Cambodia, 2024
