Evaluation of Intervention Methods Used to Reduce Preventable Illnesses in Rural and Impoverished Communities

Abstract

The disproportionate negative impacts of preventable diseases on impoverished communities are often due to a lack of resources to instill safe and hygienic practices. Provision of resources and education, in addition to an improvement in water quality, hand washing, and oral hygiene practices could decrease the prevalence of preventable diseases, such as diarrheal and respiratory illnesses. To alleviate these health concerns in the rural village of Gracias a Dios, Honduras, a literature review was conducted to evaluate different existing intervention methods. The methods evaluated included using emotional drivers for behavior change, educational interventions, theory-based interventions, and combination interventions. Through the review of existing literature concerning various intervention methods used in rural and impoverished areas worldwide, it can be deduced that there is no method that clearly yields greater results than others. Therefore, to maximize the impact of a health intervention, a combination of the most successful parts of all interventions should be implemented.