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Tag: Patients

International Day to End Obstetric Fistula

International Day to End Obstetric Fistula – IDEOF 2021

As we mark International Day to End Obstetric Fistula (IDEOF), the team at Catherine Hamlin Fistula Foundation is reflecting on the state of obstetric fistula in Ethiopia and the progress made over the past 62 years to eradicate fistula. Forever. Over 60,000 women have been successfully treated at Hamlin’s Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital and its […]...

May 10th, 2021 Read More

A New Start for Fatuma

Fatuma grew up surrounded by farms and mountains. In her small rural town of Gursum in Eastern Ethiopia, agriculture is the only source of income for families like hers. Tragically, Fatuma’s geographic isolation was also the cause of her obstetric fistula injury. Through the Hamlin Model of Care, Fatuma was able to undergo fistula repair […]...

March 18th, 2021 Read More

Rebirth After a Preventable Tragedy: Chaltu’s Story

Chaltu doesn’t know when her birthday is; she estimates that she is 20 years old. Unfortunately, Chaltu does know, all too well, the agony of obstetric fistula. Chaltu’s story is far too common in remote Ethiopia: a lack of resources and information condemning women to suffer the preventable tragedy of fistula. At the time of […]...

February 4th, 2021 Read More

Treated with Love: Etagegn’s Story

Etagegn’s story is one of heartbreaking lows and hopeful highs: from a remote village near Limmu in the Oromiya Region, to the agony of obstetric fistula, to the optimism of a life restored after being lovingly cared for at Hamlin’s Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital. The agony of fistula Etagegn is no stranger to tragedy. When […]...

February 4th, 2021 Read More

Jallene’s Journey

For years, Jallene needlessly endured the agony of obstetric fistula without any medical attention. Thanks to a new Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia initiative, Jallene was identified by Hamlin-trained health officers and taken to the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital for treatment. Jallene’s story is one of sacrifice, suffering and, ultimately, the renewal of hope. Life before fistula Jallene […]...

June 24th, 2020 Read More

Ayana’s Journey to Hope

Ayana is one of the 24 patients found in the initial phase of Hamlin’s new Patient Identification Program. Her story is one of resilience through tragedy – and her journey to finding hope. The pain of fistula Ayana grew up in rural Southern Ethiopia, in a remote village where access to infrastructure is limited. In […]...

June 22nd, 2020 Read More

Reaching Every Woman With Fistula

For too many women in Ethiopia, their poverty and geographic isolation increase the likelihood of them suffering an obstetric fistula injury. Geographic remoteness is a barrier to the care that fistula patients need, causing thousands of women to needlessly suffer the pain and trauma of fistula for years before they receive treatment. Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia‘s […]...

June 9th, 2020 Read More

Three Years and 35 Kilometres: Semenesh’s journey to joy

Semenesh grew up in a small, rural village in Southern Ethiopia. Her village was so isolated that it would take seven hours to walk to the nearest school, clinic or bus stop. This isolation would drastically reduce the opportunities available to Semenesh. It would also contribute to Semenesh suffering a devastating injury called obstetric fistula. […]...

April 30th, 2020 Read More

A Transformational Journey

Garnering international and professional recognition was never the priority for Dr Catherine Hamlin; serving some of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable women in Ethiopia was, however. The stories of the obstetric fistula patients Catherine and her team treated are inspiring. These women, whose lives have irrevocably been changed by fistula repair surgery, reflect incredibly poignantly […]...

April 27th, 2020 Read More

Enat’s Long Journey to Healing

For 61 one her 96 years, Dr Catherine Hamlin has cared for the most vulnerable women in Ethiopia. For obstetric fistula patients living is isolated areas, the importance of Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia’s five regional hospitals cannot be understated. One of the thousands of rural patients who knows the value of Hamlin’s regional hospitals is Enat. […]...

January 24th, 2020 Read More

Introducing our Limited Edition 60th Anniversary Portraits!

As we continue to celebrate Dr Catherine Hamlin‘s 60th year in Ethiopia, we are delighted to announce that renowned Australian artist Wendy Sharpe has painted two portraits of fistula patients cured by Catherine and the Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia team in Addis Ababa. The portraits have been made especially for Catherine’s supporters in limited edition, collector’s […]...

July 19th, 2019 Read More