Hands That Clean, Hands That Heal, Hands That Fix

To reach Sherpur District Sadar Hospital, you travel 200 kilometers northwest of the capital city Dhaka. It’s May, the paddy harvesting season. Along the way, golden rice fields sway under the sun, farmers sift through their harvest, and jackfruits cluster on roadside trees.

As the landscape shifts from open fields to roadside markets and rickshaw stands, you enter Sherpur city and head towards the hospital with help from the locals. Here, directions come from the fuchka sellers, not an app.

The hospital bustles with over 2,000 patients, including 200 children every day. As you enter the old building, four flights of stairs lead you to the women’s ward, where you will find women – patients and visitors, separated by curtains drawn across doorways.

Behind the scenes, keeping this world moving, is 50-year-old Shahanaz.

Shahanaz: The one who keeps infections at bay

Shahanaz has been working at the hospital for over 3 decades now. She lives “five Taka away” from the hospital. In Sherpur, distance is measured in rickshaw fare, not kilometres or miles. As a Cleaner in the women’s ward, she keeps the floors clean, toilets running, and waste managed, quietly guarding the ward against infection every day.

“People throw all sorts of things in toilets – sanitary pads, used towels, even plastic bottles,” says Shahanaz. “Many are used to squatting pots and don’t know how to use commodes properly, so accidents happen.”

Over the years, she has seen everything from broken taps, clogged toilets, leaking sinks, blocked drains, and waste piling up near the hospital rooms. But recently, she has noticed a shift.

“I don’t know who did it, but I saw changes,” says Shahanaz. “The new tiles, repaired toilets and basins, drinking water stations and new color-coded roller waste bins were really helpful.” What she noticed were improvements under the WASH FIT project, supported by the Republic of Korea and UNICEF.

“Now it’s easier,” she adds. “People are more aware. The toilets aren’t blocked for days anymore.”

Her work is tough, and recognition is little. But without Shahanaz, the women’s ward in Sherpur District Sadar Hospital will not run.

Tahmina: The one who helps bring new lives into the world

As Shahanaz mops the corridor floor of the women’s ward, 26-year-old midwife Tahmina Akhter walks carefully beside her, mindful not to step on the clean trail.

For the past four years, Tahmina has stood beside mothers during some of the most vulnerable and emotional moments of their lives. She prepares them for delivery, supports them through the wait for their baby’s first cry, comforts mothers recovering from caesarean surgery, and makes sure every newborn receives the best care in the first hours of life.

That’s why, since the implementation of WASH FIT project, Tahmina, and fellow nurses and doctors joined hands with Shahanaz to make sure the women’s ward stays clean.

“In the first hours after birth, both mother and baby are especially vulnerable to infections,” says Tahmina. “Cleanliness is not just important, it’s life-saving. That’s why we see it as a shared responsibility.”

But keeping the ward clean and hygienic wasn't always easy.

“Before the WASH FIT improvements, even basic hygiene was a struggle,” Tahmina recalls. “We didn’t have enough waste bins. Often, new mothers, caregivers, and staff had to go three floors down just to wash their hands or to find a functional toilet.”

Things have changed for the better now. Today, every patient receives a personal waste bucket, handwashing stations at the ward are fully functional, and color-coded bins help ensure proper waste segregation. Tahmina says these improvements have made a significant difference in infection control.

“We now have better facilities, and we have been trained to use them properly,” says Tahmina. “What we need now is regular upkeep and maintenance support so these improvements last.”

Hasnan: The one who fixes things

You will not find 56-year-old Mohamed Abdul Hasnan in a doctor’s coat or nurse’s scrubs. He does not stand beside delivery beds or consult patients in the women’s ward. Yet, without him, much of Sherpur District Sadar Hospital would not function.

Hasnan’s official title is Electrician, but his responsibilities go far beyond that. Behind-the-scenes, he is the one starting the water pump at dawn, rewiring the faulty circuits, or fixing broken or leaking taps, often before anyone else even notices there’s a problem.

“I’ve been here for almost 30 years,” says Hasnan. “Electrical work, plumbing, maintenance, if something breaks, I am the one they call.” At the women’s ward it’s the same. Whenever something stops working, Shahanaz always reaches out to Hasnan.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Hasnan received training from UNICEF in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). The training helped him learn the skills to manage the hospital’s water supply, clean tanks, and maintain the toilets more effectively. So, when UNICEF and partners began assessments under the WASH FIT project at the hospital, Hasnan played a key role. He accompanied engineers from ward to ward, helping them understand the hospital’s infrastructure and worked closely with nurses and maintenance teams, to ensure every detail was documented and addressed. He was also hands on with the upgrades, installing new pipes, fixing the sewage blockages, and cleaning the overhead tanks.

Still, challenges remain. Hasnan feels that the new hospital building needs a similar level of improvement. But he remains hopeful.

“The old hospital building saw big changes because of UNICEF’s support,” says Hasnan. “If we can follow a similar model to improve the new building, things will get better for patients, visitors, staff, everyone.”

###

Note for editors:

About WASH FIT project

Supported by the Republic of Korea (ROK), the WASH FIT project has strengthened Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) services in healthcare facilities across Bangladesh, improving health, safety, and dignity of children and families. After conducting comprehensive WASH assessments in 16 facilities, UNICEF implemented the project in two district hospitals and five upazila health complexes. 

UNICEF supported a range of improvements including cleaning and repairing water tanks, replacing damaged pipes, upgrading and gender-segregating toilets, installing water filters for safe drinking water, installing menstrual hygiene management facilities, and managing waste segregation.

The project offers a scalable model for strengthening public health by improving WASH services in healthcare facilities. In the long term, continued training and capacity building and an annual operations and maintenance fund can help expansion of these improvements and safeguard the health of children and families. UNICEF will continue to advocate for integrating WASH upgrades into long-term, government-led healthcare quality standards.