The use of digital technology to improve and monitor handwashing among children 12 years or younger in educational settings: a scoping review

ABSTRACT

Our scoping review aimed to identify and describe the application of digital technology in hand hygiene research among children in educational settings. We searched for articles in PubMed, IEEE Xplore, and Web of Science. Original hand hygiene research with a form of digital technology used among children ≤12 years in educational settings was eligible for inclusion. Twelve studies met the eligibility criteria and the data were extracted by two teams of independent co-authors for narrative synthesis. Ten studies used digital technology as an intervention tool and two for monitoring purposes. Three main digital technologies were identified including computer games (n = 2), videos (n = 8), and video cameras (n = 2). Digital technologies found in our scoping review were reported to be effective in hand hygiene studies over short temporal periods especially when used in combination with other measures. Future research may demonstrate the effectiveness of digital technology in helping children develop sustainable handwashing behaviors.

KEYWORDS:

• Behavioral monitoring
• computer games
• handwashing
• health education
• videos

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Dr. Seonghye Jeon for extracting data for the Korean paper that is included in this scoping review. ICHF acknowledges salary support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the academic year of 2018-19 and 2019-20 (IPA 18IPA1808820; 19IPA1908208). This manuscript is not related to his CDC-funded research. The CDC has no role in the design, implementation, and publication of this scoping review. SKO and KMR thank the Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Environmental Health Sciences for their graduate assistantships in the academic year of 2018-19 and 2019-20.

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not represent the official positions of the CDC or the United States Government.

Disclosure of interest

The authors report no conflict of interest.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here.