Research Article Microbial Content of (Bowl Water) Used for Communal Handwashing in Preschools within Accra Metropolis, Ghana Patience B. Tetteh-Quarcoo, 1 Isaac Anim-Baidoo, 2 Simon Kwaku Attah, 1 Bawa Abdul-Latif Baako, 2 Japheth A. Opintan, 1 Andrew A. Minamor, 3 Mubarak Abdul-Rahman, 4 and Patrick F. Ayeh-Kumi 1,2 1 Department of Medical Microbiology, School of Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana 2 Department of Medical Laboratory Science, School of Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana 3 Department of Science Laboratory Technology, Accra Polytechnic, Accra, Ghana 4 Department of Immunology, School of Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana Correspondence should be addressed to Patience B. Tetteh-Quarcoo; patborket2002@yahoo.com Received 31 May 2016; Accepted 10 July 2016 Academic Editor: Karl Drlica Copyright © 2016 Patience B. Tetteh-Quarcoo et al. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Objective. Tis study aimed at determining the microbial content of “bowl water” used for communal handwashing in preschools within the Accra Metropolis. Method. Six (6) preschools in the Accra Metropolis were involved in the study. Water samples and swabs from the hands of the preschool children were collected. Te samples were analysed and tested for bacteria, fungi, parasites, and rotavirus. Results. Eight diferent bacteria, two diferent parasites, and a fungus were isolated while no rotavirus was detected. Unlike the rest of the microbes, bacterial isolates were found among samples from all the schools, with Staphylococcus species being the most prevalent (40.9%). Out of the three schools that had parasites in their water, two of them had Cryptosporidium parvum. Te fungus isolated from two out of the six schools was Aspergillus niger. All bacteria isolated were found to be resistant to cotrimoxazole, ciprofoxacin, and ampicillin and susceptible to amikacin and levofoxacin. Conclusion. Although handwashing has the ability to get rid of microbes, communal handwashing practices using water in bowls could be considered a possible transmission route and may be of public concern. 1. Introduction Provision of a bowl of water for handwashing in preschools is an intervention by childcare facilities in Ghana, to maintain hygienic practices and prevent transmission of microbes. In the year 2005, the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) was implemented as one of the most important social inter- ventions by the government, to help boost public basic school enrolments [1]. Te programme ofers one meal each day for all government preschoolers and primary school children. Tis provision is to reduce hunger and malnutrition, increase school enrolment and attendance, and stimulate local food pro- duction. Similarly, many privately owned preschools provide meals for their pupils. Tis has therefore necessitated the provision of water for handwashing before and afer meals. “Bowl water” (water in a basin/bowl) has been adapted to serve this purpose whenever the fow of running tap water is interrupted. Handwashing has been regarded as a signifcant preven- tive measure against diarrhoeal diseases [2]. It is an efective [2], feasible [2–5], and cost-efective [6] means of preventing gastroenteric infection worldwide. Recently, there has been growing awareness of its importance not only as a diarrhoeal disease preventive measure [2, 7], but also as part of a wider public health efort to reduce the disease burden of acute respiratory infections worldwide [2, 8–10]. Te importance of handwashing has also been underlined in a recent review of measures to control the spread of pandemic infuenza [11]. Te two leading causes of disease burden globally, respiratory infections and diarrhoeal diseases, are responsible for half Hindawi Publishing Corporation International Journal of Microbiology Volume 2016, Article ID 2617473, 8 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/2617473