Bangladesh develops strategy to end fistula by 2030

Bangladesh has developed a national strategy to end fistula within 2030 by ensuring that no one is left behind.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) says obstetric fistula has been eradicated in the developed world and it now mainly affects poor and marginalised women without access to adequate and skilled birth attendants.

In Bangladesh, an estimated 71,000 women suffer from the condition.

However, identifying the cases can be challenging as there is a lot of stigma attached to fistula and women are often ostracised from their communities, unable to work and therefore, earn a livelihood.

An obstetric fistula is a hole between the vagina and the bladder or rectum, through which urine or stool leaks continuously.  Obstructed and prolonged labour largely causes this devastating injury.

It happens predominantly when women do not have access to quality emergency obstetric care services and deliver at the hands of unskilled attendants.

The UNFPA issued a statement on the International Day to End Obstetric Fistula observed on Tuesday.

The UN agency and its partners from the National Fistula Center, USAID, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, DMCH, Engender Health and Fistula Care Plus project came together at the National Fistula Center at Dhaka Medical College Hospital to raise awareness about this often hidden condition.

After more than a decade of work, thousands of women have received surgery and taken part in rehabilitation programmes; and significant progress has been made in terms of care and research into the causes and consequences of this childbirth injury.

But the UNFPA says more effort is needed to ensure that the suffering women can access treatment, rehabilitation and prevention in the form of a higher rate of women delivering their babies in health facilities with a skilled birth attendant.

UNFPA Executive Director Babatunde Osotimehin in a statement said the time has come to put an end to this suffering wherever it occurs.

“The theme of this year’s International Day to End Obstetric Fistula, “Hope, healing, and dignity for all”, is, at its heart, a call to realize the fundamental human rights of all women and girls everywhere, with a special focus on those most left behind, excluded and shunned by society,” he said.

Ending fistula is a high priority and it is a key step on the road to achieving the world’s Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, says the UNFPA.

“Strong health systems and greater efforts to address the underlying issues that perpetuate it, including poverty, gender inequality, early marriage and childbearing, and lack of education are crucial,” the executive director said.