CRR: Obstetric fistula sensitisation ends

Over sixty participants drawn from twelve villages in Banni Ward, Sami District, Central River Region (CRR) North, last weekend, concluded a two-day community sensitisation on obstetric fistula.

In his presentation, the senior nursing officer at the RCH Unit in Banjul, Nfamara Fatty said unattended obstetric labour that lasts for up to six to seven days leaves the foetus dead, usually after two or three days.  He further opined that during the prolonged labour, the soft tissues of the pelvis are compressed between the descending baby’s head and the mother’s pelvis bone. Fatty noted that left untreated, fistula can lead to frequent ulcerations and infections, kidney disease  and even death.

The RCH senior nursing officer pointed out that prevention rather than treatment is the key to ending fistula.  He explained that makingthe treatment available to all who want to use it will reduce maternal disability and death by at least 20 percent.

The CRR senior CHN tutor, Ida Ceesay, said the consequences of fistula are life-shattering and the baby usually dies, leaving the woman with chronic incontinence.  Because of the inability to control her flow of urine or faeces, she went on, the woman is often abandoned or neglected by her family and husband and ostracised by her community.  

She noted that without treatment, the woman’s prospects for work and family life will be greatly diminished and that she is often left to rely on charity.