A dark time Yeshi was just a teenager when she suffered a severe obstetric fistula, due to an obstructed labour 20 years ago. The experience was so traumatic, she does not talk about it. What we do know is that her bladder was destroyed and the nerves in her legs damaged, leaving her with difficulty […]...
Beletshachew Tadesse is Hamlin’s Rehabilitation and Reintegration Manager. She recently wrote to us about Yeshi – one of Desta Mender’s first patients and one of the first women to benefit from Hamlin’s rehabilitation and reintegration program. You can help empower a woman like Yeshi today by making a tax-deductible donation here. ...
The long labour has severely damaged Tekiya, she suffered a double obstetric fistula and her legs were swollen which made her unable to walk....
For women with more severe fistula injuries, Dr Catherine Hamlin’s Desta Mender, or ‘Joy Village’, offers them a kind of haven. The rehabilitation facility is a place where women can live in peace and harmony while they slowly regain their physical and mental health. “Most of them would love nothing more than to return to […]...
Celebrating the women of Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia Today is International Women’s Day; a day to celebrate the women who inspire us and take action to support the women who need us. The time is now, for all of us, to stand up for these women’s rights and create a healthier, happier world. Dr Catherine Hamlin […]...
Fetenech has a smile that beams. The 28-year-old has her own coffee house, which has prospered since she started it three years ago. “I am born again and want to focus on my bright future ahead,” she says. But her future wasn’t always so bright. In her teens, Fetenech had complications giving birth. She suffered […]...
Hamlin strives to give every woman the dignity and fullness of life they deserve. In some cases an operation to fix a fistula is very straight forward. In other cases, such as in the case of 34-year-old Beburuyosh it can take a lot longer. After suffering 4 days of obstructed labour during her first pregnancy, […]...
Ruziya got married and soon after fell pregnant - she and her family were overjoyed. She continued to spend each day at work and prepared to have a home delivery like so many before her....
After four long, painful days passed without any sign of the baby, Belaynesh fell unconscious. Her family rushed her to the nearest health facility in another village....
Beburuyosh felt worthless and ashamed. Whilst she was lucky to have a supportive husband, father and sister, she still felt isolated and could no longer contribute fully to her village community....
Asrebeb had an obstructed labour that lasted several days. Realising something was wrong; friends and family carried her on a hand-made stretcher to a distant hospital....
For five long days, Lensse suffered through an intense birth. She fell unconscious due to her lengthy labour and eventually delivered a stillborn baby....
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