According to latest reports, about 150,000 Nigerian women suffer from uncontrolled urination and defecation, otherwise known as obstetric fistula. This health condition reportedly makes its victim commit suicide or run away from people because of the humiliation, shame and mystery it brings to them. Some women have gone through this malady for about 50 years before help came their way.
Among the pain that the disease adds to the lives of women are loneliness and lost dignity. Women affected often could not sit among members of the community or attend women meetings because of the stench from their body. They live a life of isolation and endurance, while wishing the mystery ends soon.
Those affected can get relief from the Daughters of Virtue and Empowerment Initiative (DOVENET), with the support of the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID’s) Fistula Care Plus Project managed by Engender Health, NOFIC.
One woman admitted that not adhering to family planning almost destroyed my life. She regrets not taking decision on time on when to stop childbearing, but she is happy the fistula that came down with her ninth childbirth has been fully repaired.
Doctors say one of the predisposing factors for obstetric fistula is the lack of family planning and too frequent childbirth. They say this weakens part of the reproductive system and during childbirth may lead to fistula.
Unlike many women suffering from the scourge, who have either been sent packing from their marital home or outrightly ostracised from their communities, there are those who stand by their affected women.
Many women with obstetric fistula have committed suicide from depression and shame.
But isn’t it a shame that women suffered for several decades because of an issue that would only take one hour plus to repair. However, at the present time, only a few women are getting the treatment they need.
A Clinical Associate, Fistula Care Plus, Dr. Suleiman Zakariya says about 12,000 new cases of obstetric fistula are discovered yearly in Nigeria, amounting to an average of 33 women coming down with the disease every year.
About 150,000 Nigerian women presently living with the condition in Nigeria, but what is more worrisome is that many of them are not aware there exist treatment to stop the leakage. Most of them are also not aware the surgical treatment is done in the country free of charge by the Federal Government.
While Engender Health, the FG and other organisations continue to make interventions towards prevention and treatment of obstetric fistula in the country, it is believed that soon the humiliation, shame and mystery from obstetric fistula will become history through reduced burden, and subsequently, eradication of the disease.
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About DOVENET
Daughters of Virtue & Empowerment Initiative(DOVENET); is an independent, non-profit organization working in Nigeria. The organization was established in year 2000 registered with CAC in the year 2005, with the vision to see a society where all individuals are empowered to contribute towards growth and development irrespective of gender; through advocacy, training/capacity building & empowerment, to strengthen and empower women and young people to make them confident contributors to development.
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