Rationale:
Effective hand washing practices are critical in reducing mortality rates among preschool children. It is estimated that up to 90 percent of infections among children including diarrhea can be prevented with effective hand washing practices not only among young children but also among their caregivers. The authors and publishers of this information made this information to highlight the hand washing practices among caregivers before preparing food or feeding children in rural and urban areas because hand washing plays a critical role in reducing infections such as diarrhea among children. Despite not using strong emotional language and cues such as all caps, the authors have included important facts and data to prove their claim. To add to the validity of their and further appeal to the logical reasoning of their targeted audiences, the authors have referenced their work using peer-reviewed works that are current and historical (Khan, Kumar, Priya & Yadav, 2017).
Authority:
The article was coauthored by Sachin Singh Yadav, Samreen Khan, Vishwanath Kumar and Neha Priya who are medicine specialists based at India’s Teerthankar Mahaveer University. The university is located in Moradabad City, in the state of Uttar Pradesh where the study was conducted (Khan, Kumar, Priya & Yadav, 2017). They are serial authors of various scientific articles covering various topics especially in medicine and public health.
The publisher of the article, International Journal of Medical Science and Public Health, is an international recognized medicine and public health journal that publishes peer-reviewed articles covering a wide variety of topics. It is an internationally indexed open access journal with both print and online publications. The use of peers to review articles submitted by researchers and scholars a significant level of reputability to the information source. Therefore, the article is not a fabrication or a piece meant for satire. Rather, it is a report that highlights and discusses facts and figures from a scientific research conducted by scientists. Its authenticity is further enhanced by the use of a quick response bar code.
Date:
The article was received by the journal editors on July 10, 2016. The editors accepted the article on July 22, 2016 for review. The article was published in 2017 (Khan, Kumar, Priya & Yadav, 2017). There are no newer articles that have been published on the specific topic covered by the topic. This is informed, in part, by the fact that hand washing among caregivers for preschoolers and young children in rural and urban areas is not a fast changing topic like technology. Therefore, the information, facts, figures and conclusion contained in the article are not obsolete. This is further supported by the fact that the article was published within the last five years which is within the time range for deducing the obsoleteness of scientific research and information.
The article links and references to other used to corroborate the arguments and evidence of the research are up-to-date. The authors have also used sources which are older to offer a historical perspective on the topic and cement their arguments.
Accuracy:
Based on the sources used to support the arguments of the article and other publications, it can be concluded that the authors presented accurate information on the topic. Accuracy is further enhanced by the use of peer reviewers and the authenticity and credibility of the publisher. Authenticity is further enhanced by a clear description of research method used. The researchers used a systematic random sampling technique where the researchers visited houses of the participants. The collected data was analyzed by scientifically recognized methods including Chi-square analysis, the latest version of statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) software and Fisher Exact. They also used descriptive statistics to put their findings into perspective (Khan, Kumar, Priya & Yadav, 2017). Subject experts and internationally recognized organizations such as World Health Organization and UNICEF agree that hand washing is vital in preventing various infections such as diarrhea not only among children but also among adults.
Relevance:
The article is relevant because it highlights the disparities in hand washing practices among caregivers in rural and urban areas. Caregivers in rural areas use plain water to wash their hands before preparing or giving food preschool children. This is unlike urban center based caregivers who use soap to clean their hands before preparing food or giving food to children.
The article covers the topic in a simplified manner that is easy to read and understand. Understanding is enhanced by the topical coverage of the issue which makes it easier to follow the thought train of the authors. By covering hand washing practices among caregivers for young children in urban and rural areas, the article enlightened me on the existence of such disparities. Despite covering a geographical location that I am not interested in, the demographics of the population makes this article relevant to me. Urban and rural demographics are not confined to this geographical area and can be found in my geographical area of interest.
The article targets a broad range of audiences including caregivers, parents or guardians, policymakers and healthcare professionals. It also target public health professionals who are directly or indirectly involved with public health especially the health of young children.
Conclusions:
This article provides authentic, well-referenced information on an important population health issue that interests me. The article uses up-to-date references and has clear methodology that adds to its authenticity and credibility.
Reference
Khan, S., Kumar, V., Priya, N. & Yadav, S. S. (2017). Handwashing practices among the caregivers of under five children in rural and urban areas of Moradabad, India: A community based study. Int J Med Sci Public Health, 6:133-138