Using ArcMap, Google Earth, and Global Positioning Systems to select and locate random households in rural Haiti.

BACKGROUND: A remote sensing technique was developed which combines a Geographic Information System (GIS); Google Earth, and Microsoft Excel to identify home locations for a random sample of households in rural Haiti. The method was used to select homes for ethnographic and water quality research in a region of rural Haiti located within 9 km of a local hospital and source of health education in Deschapelles, Haiti. The technique does not require access to governmental records or ground based surveys to collect household location data and can be performed in a rapid, cost-effective manner. METHODS: The random selection of households and the location of these households during field surveys were accomplished using GIS, Google Earth, Microsoft Excel, and handheld Garmin GPSmap 76CSx GPS units. Homes were identified and mapped in Google Earth, exported to ArcMap 10.0, and a random list of homes was generated using Microsoft Excel which was then loaded onto handheld GPS units for field location. The development and use of a remote sensing method was essential to the selection and location of random households. RESULTS: A total of 537 homes initially were mapped and a randomized subset of 96 was identified as potential survey locations. Over 96% of the homes mapped using Google Earth imagery were correctly identified as occupied dwellings. Only 3.6% of the occupants of mapped homes visited declined to be interviewed. 16.4% of the homes visited were not occupied at the time of the visit due to work away from the home or market days. A total of 55 households were located using this method during the 10 days of fieldwork in May and June of 2012. CONCLUSIONS: The method used to generate and field locate random homes for surveys and water sampling was an effective means of selecting random households in a rural environment lacking geolocation infrastructure. The success rate for locating households using a handheld GPS was excellent and only rarely was local knowledge required to identify and locate households. This method provides an important technique that can be applied to other developing countries where a randomized study design is needed but infrastructure is lacking to implement more traditional participant selection methods.

Evaluation of Hand⁻Dug Wells in Rural Haiti.

Water resources, especially safe, potable water, are limited for many Haitians. In areas where shallow groundwater is available, many household water needs such as laundry, bathing, and cooking are supplied by hand⁻dug wells. In order to better understand the water quality and prevalence of these household wells, 35 hand⁻dug wells were surveyed and sampled near the Hôpital Albert Schweitzer in Deschapelles, Haiti. Water samples were collected and tested for fecal coliform and Escherichia coli using the IDEXX Colilert⁻18 method. Of the samples collected, 89 percent were determined unsafe to use as a drinking water source based on the World Health Organization standard of 1.0 colony⁻forming unit (cfu) E. coli per 100 mL. Sixty⁻six percent of the wells exceeded recreational/body contact standards for the state of Michigan (130 cfu/100 mL). Some of these wells were deemed suitable for conversion to a new well type called in situ filtration (ISF) wells. In situ filtration wells are installed with an internal sand filter pack, PVC casing, pump, and cap which seals the well from surface contamination and provides additional water treatment as water is pumped. Previous ISF installations have reduced E. coli to safe drinking water levels within 90 days.

Long-term field performance of biosand filters in the Artibonite Valley, Haiti.

A field study assessing the sustainability and efficacy of 55 biosand filters installed during 1999-2010 was conducted in the Artibonite Valley, Haiti during 2011. Twenty-nine filters were still in use. Duration of filter use ranged from < 1 to 12 years. Water quality, microbial analysis, and flow rate were evaluated for each functioning filter. Kaplan-Meier analysis of filter lifespans showed that filter use remained high (> 85%) up to seven years after installation. Several filters were still in use after 12 years, which is longer than documented in any previous study. Filtered water from 25 filters (86%) contained Escherichia coli concentrations of < 10 most probable number of coliforms/100 mL. Recontamination of stored filtered water was negligible. Bacterial removal efficiency was 1.1 log(10). Comparable results from previous studies in the same region and elsewhere show that biosand filter technology continues to be an effective and sustainable water treatment method in developing countries worldwide.