Awareness. Prevention. Treatment.

Part of our team! From L-R: Emilia, Silva, Avozinha, Elisa, Veronica and Petra

Our team have spent the last two months dedicated to our mission of raising awareness about Obstetric Fistula, training healthcare professionals to prevent obstetric fistula, helping women to receive repair operations, and counselling them to help heal their emotional trauma.

Each step is essential. Each step is important. Each step leads toward greater empowerment for women. We are constantly grateful to our donors, Fistula Foundation and Hope For Our Sisters, for making our work possible. Below are some of the key activities we implemented over September and October this year!

1. In September our amazing training team, led by Petra Jobse, conducted 13 training sessions for government nurses from the 24 municipalities in Kwanza Sul province. The nurses learnt about the causes of obstetric fistula and perineal tears, how to prevent them, how to identify women who have obstetric fistula, and pathways to treatment. We also taught them about the effects of trauma on fistula patients, as well as for all patients who aren't received with care and attention by healthcare professionals.

   The team travelled more than 3400 km, conducting on average 3 trainings per week. Overall they trained 373 professionals and distributed special Education Kits to 217 of these trainees. The kits are made up of laminated, colour A3 images which they can use when raising awareness about obstetric fistula in their health centres, communities and churches.

   

   

   

   
   
   

2. Our Trauma and Reintegration team travelled to Kaluquembe in September to support our partners in conducting Community Awareness lectures about Obstetric Fistula and to provide trauma counselling to the patients recovering from obstetric fistula surgery at the "House of Hope". We were able to spread the message of obstetric fistula awareness, prevention and treatment to hundreds of people in the villages surrounding Kaluquembe. It is always a pleasure to partner with people like Dr Priscila Cummings, missionary doctor at Kaluquembe, and Julia the manager of the House of Hope - caring individuals who are dedicated to supporting and loving the women who suffer from obstetric fistula.

   

   

   
   
   

3. In October we supported our partners at Vangulula House from Azancot Hospital in Luanda in a mini-campaign with visiting surgeon Dr Mhairi Collie and nurse specialist Ishbel Campbell. Our team referred 28 patients for surgery, and our Senior Nurse Agostinho "Silva" Sambaca provided translation for Ishbel as she reinforced the initial training given in August to the nursing team at Vangulula. Our Trauma and Reintegration team were at the forefront of providing emotional support and education to the women - supporting the women we referred as well as the women who were referred from other sources. It is beautiful to see the changes that love, attention, patient explanation and true concern can create in the individuals we support. It is why our motto is "Rise Up - with Love and Hope"! Aside from being a giving person, an outstanding surgeon, and chair of the Ugandan Childbirth Injury Fund, Dr Collie is also an author! She has written a beautiful book called "The Bright Fabric of Life", a novel which describes the life-changing connection between a surgeon and a fistula patient. We highly recommend it for the pleasure of the read, as well as the engaging and true-to-life depiction of what it is like for a woman to face a life of incontinence as a result of obstetric fistula.

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

4. As part of our mission to spread the message of awareness and prevention of obstetric fistula to as many women as possible, we also organised a community training session with Women's Groups from different churches in Luanda on the 15th of October. The event was held at the Mediateca of Luanda with participation from 47 women of the following churches: Catholic, IECA, Tocoist, Pentecostal, 7th Day Adventist, and Anglican, as well as members of CICA (Council of Christian Churches of Angola). We distributed 18 Education Kits to participants who guaranteed to conduct awareness lectures within their churches and communities. It was wonderful to unite with women dedicated to change, and this event was a direct result of the 1st National Conference on the Role of the Church in the Prevention of Obstetric Fistula which we organised in March this year. We hope to keep the momentum going and to continue to strengthen our relationship with the different church groups as they are such an essential part of Angolan society.

   

   

   
   
   

5. Our lead trainer Petra Jobse travelled to Boston, USA for a fundraising event held by our donors Hope For Our Sisters. Hope For Our Sisters were the first donors to support the Fistula Program developed by Petra, and the focus of their annual fundraiser this year was the work of Votoka in Angola. We feel continually blessed to be funded, and in many ways emotionally supported, by the Hope For Our Sisters team.