Awareness Raising in Communities: Obstetric Fistula exists, it can be treated, and it can be prevented!
All year long our team works tirelessly to raise awareness about obstetric fistula. Some of our greatest work is done in villages, marketplaces, churches, on buses, at police stops, and in health posts and the waiting areas of hospitals.
We talk, and talk, and talk about obstetric fistula!
We want everyone to know what it is, how it happens, that the women who suffer from this problem can be helped, and that it can be prevented from happening in the first place.
Meeting people in their own communities and sharing our knowledge with them in their language, using images to illustrate our points, is a huge part of what we do. This means long hours on share-taxis, on motorbikes, on foot...in the heat, in the rain, in the cold. Obstetric fistula is more likely to affect women in hard-to-reach places, and they are the least likely to get treatment. So we search for them.
We work hard to spread the message of hope. And when it succeeds...we change lives.
We also hope that we save lives. If just 1 woman seeks medical attention earlier in her labour thanks to our efforts, then it is all worth it. If just 1 man takes his wife to the hospital for an ultrasound, then it is worth it. If just 1 nurse pays attention and helps a women who comes seeking help, it is worth it!
If we can change small behaviours, then we can have huge impacts.
Comments