×

We've got news for you.

Register on SowetanLIVE at no cost to receive newsletters, read exclusive articles & more.
Register now

Africa facing fistula head on

African countries are finding new ways to deal with the agonising childbirth injury, fistula.

Across the developing world more than two million girls and women still suffer from the painful, debilitating condition.

Women who birth at home, often in far-flung rural areas where hospitals are too far away or expensive to reach, are especially at risk of obstetric fistula - a hole that develops between the birth canal and bladder or rectum, caused by prolonged, obstructed labour.

Women are left leaking urine, faeces or both.

"People tell me: here, the women are witches," said Marie Sebo, a community health worker from eastern Cameroon who helps fistula victims access free surgery.

But in recent years, organisations, with support from African governments have launched initiatives to try to bring fistula to an end.

Cost is one of the biggest barriers to accessing treatment - in Cameroon, for example, each fistula repair is priced between the equivalent of R6700 and R13500.

But today, in Tanzania and Kenya, the cellphone-based money transfer service M-Pesa covers upfront transportation costs.

And in Burundi, Kenya, Malawi, Sierra Leone and other countries, telephone hotlines connect women to medical information and care.

In Sierra Leone, the women are reimbursed at the end of their journeys, also providing free accommodation and meals before and after surgery.

Djenna Ousmane, 18, developed fistula while giving birth after a forced marriage at the age of 14. But while such operations are necessary , prevention is better than cure, experts say.

"Patient ambassadors" - women and girls who have been cured - are being trained to inform others of the dangers of early pregnancy, give advice on safe deliveries, and help refer fistula cases for treatment.

In Ethiopia, the Healing Hands of Joy group has trained 524 ambassadors, who have reached more than 13000 pregnant women, according to a 2016 UN report.

The UNFPA trains male volunteers as part of so-called "husband schools" in different African countries.

The men talk to their neighbours about anything from the dangers of child marriage to encouraging families to save money for prenatal checks.

In Kenya, the "Action on Fistula" programme has treated more than 2500 women.

Kate Grant, CEO of the Fistula Foundation which funds the programme, said six hospitals had been built around high population areas. Surgeons are also being trained.

The programme is now being replicated in Zambia.

In Ethiopia, after treatment at the Hamlin Fistula Hospital, the world's leading hospital for the condition, women go to a purpose-built village where they learn vocational skills and how to set up businesses, said Muna Abdullah, a health system specialist with the United Nations Population Fund.

The hospital, set up by Nobel Prize-nominated surgeon Catherine Hamlin, also trains fistula surgeons and runs an internationally accredited midwifery school.

Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.