ORAL REHYDRATION THERAPY
(ORT)
Ceri Davies
March 15, 2011
OBJECTIVES
To explain what ORT is and how it can be made
cheaply and simply
 To highlight the importance of effective health
communication.

OUTLINE
What is ORT?
 Why is it important?
 When and whom is it used for?
 How is it made?


Video
Health Communication tips
 Questions

WHAT IS ORT?
A rehydration therapy made from a special
combination of salts and sugar mixed with clean,
safe water.
 Designed to help the body replace fluids lost
during illness.

WHEN AND WITH WHOM IS ORT USED?


Most commonly used for diarrhea, especially with
children.
Pre-prepared Oral Rehydration Solution
packages are available in many countries.

When these are not available use a homemade ORT
solution.
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?


Necessary to rehydrate the body to prevent
death.
ORS packages are often used in poorer nations as
an inexpensive way of reducing the millions of
deaths caused each year by diarrhea.
HOW TO MAKE IT:

What You Will Need: 1teaspoon salt, 8 level teaspoons of sugar and
1 liter of safe drinking water (filtered or boiled), container.
1.Boil approximately 1 liter of filtered clean water. Boiling the water
will kill any contaminating bacteria and ensure that the water is
sterile.
2. Measure out 1 liter of the boiled water and in a suitable container like
a pitcher.
3. Add to the boiled water a pinch of regular table salt. Stir the solution
well and ensure that the salt fully dissolves in the water.
4. Add a heaping handful of sugar. Stir the sugar into the solution until
it dissolves. This solution is now ready to consume.

Can be combined with food (potatoes, rice, bananas)
Source: UNICEF, 2002
Incorrect ORT Mixing Instructions on Posters in Haiti
Sources: UNICEF, 1992; The mother and child, health and education trust. , 2011.
CAUTIONS
Too much or too little salt or sugar can have
serious consequences, especially in infants and
children, when replacing diarrhea fluid loss.
 Different measurements for adults and children

VIDEO SAMPLE

http://boingboing.net/2010/11/11/wordless-videofor-h.html

Wordless video. How to make ORT in camps in Haiti
to combat cholera.
EFFECTIVE HEALTH COMMUNICATION


Effective health communication involves the
transformation of health knowledge into
messages that are easily understood, accepted,
and put into action by the audience.
Use more than one channel of communication
COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWNS
Message may only reach some of the target
audience.
 The audience may receive the message but not
understand it.
 The audience may receive the message but
misinterpret it and apply it wrongly.
 The message may conflict with existing attitudes
and beliefs.
 Poverty and/or lack of basic services may inhibit
action.
 Failure to fully communicate message may result
in temporary behaviour change

Source: UNESCO. (n.d.)
STEPS IN EFFECTIVE HEALTH
COMMUNICATION
1.
2.
3.
4.
Clearly define what health behaviour you are
trying to promote
Decide who exactly in the population you are
trying to influence
Ask whether the new health behaviour requires
new skills
Learn about present health knowledge, beliefs,
and behaviour of the target audience.
Source: UNESCO. (n.d.)
STEPS IN EFFECTIVE HEALTH
COMMUNICATION (CONT…)
5. Enquire if the health behaviour you are trying to
promote has already been introduced into the
community.
6. Assess target audience’s present sources of
information about health.
7. Select appropriate communication channels.
8. Design suitable health messages
Questions?
REFERENCES








Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2011). Dehydration.
Retrieved from
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/dehydration/DS00561/DSECTION=treatmentsand-drugs
N.A. (2011). How to make oral rehydration solution at home. Retrieved from
http://www.ehow.com/how_2146895_make-oral-rehydration-solutionhome.html
Palo Alto Medical Foundation. (2003). Oral Rehydration Solutions. Retrieved from
http://www.pamf.org/patients/ors.html
The Patient Education Institute, Inc. (2008). Oral Rehydration Therapy. Retrieved
from http://www.patient-education.com/
The mother and child, health and education trust. (2011). Rehydration Project.
Retrieve from http://rehydrate.org/solutions/homemade.htm
UNESCO. (n.d.) Twelve steps in health communication. Retrieved from
www.unesco.org/education/educprog/ste/pdf_files/health/health12.pdf
UNICEF. (1992). Basic Science & Health Education for Primary Schools, Uganda.
Retrieved from http://www.nzdl.org/gsdlmod?e=d-00000-00---off-0fnl2.2WHO. (2006). Improved formula for oral rehydration salts to save children’s lives.
Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2006/pr14/en/