Yesterday we visited three different facilities and I'm overwhelmed (in a good way) by the dynamic leaders that I met at each.
First stop was the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital. (For more information on fistulas, check out my earlier blog post on "Maternal Mortality." Also, PBS.org has a free documentary on this facility called "A Walk to Beautiful." - see my link)
Dr. Williams led us on a tour of the facility and it was fascinating to finally see this place that I've been reading about for the last year. It was a very beautiful, clean facility. Each woman there was given a hand-woven blanket (like the ones in the picture) on her arrival and it was clear that quality of care is a high priority here. It's much more than just a hospital - programs are running for midwifery training, rural outreach, job training/employment, etc. We spent some time in the PT treatment room and I hope that we will have a clinical site there next year as it could be a great opportunity for collaboration.
Originally the hospital was founded by the Hamlins, who did a lot of ground-breaking work with surgical techniques in this area. Catherine Hamlin wrote a book "Hospital By The River" (amazon.com) which gives a very interesting overview of her life's work, the hospital and maternal medical complications in Ethiopia. She is now 80 years old and still performs surgeries once per week! We were lucky to run into her while we were there and I was so excited to meet one of my "heroes." We also got to meet Hans Dietz from Australia who is a leader in the field and happened to be doing some ultrasound research there that day. He showed us some imaging and I learned quite a bit from him in just a short time.
Currently, 75% of fistula cases are completely cured at this facility. That's pretty amazing. I was astounded by the spirit of these women after what each one has been through- most had been ostracized from their communities and left to die before they found the Fistula hospital, yet here in recovery they were all smiling, laughing together. Clearly the hospital also plays a role in their psychological recovery and renewed sense of community.
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