Ghana today joined the rest of the globe in commemorating the 'International Day to End Obstetric Fistula,' with a demand for more investment in high-quality health care for pregnant women as a guarantee of obstetric fistula elimination.
Dr. Gabriel Yao-Kumah Ganyaglo, an Obstetrician and Gynecologist at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and a Fistula Surgeon, told the Ghana News Agency that education on the causes of obstetric fistula is crucial.
"Of the various community-level variables that might enhance the possibility of an obstetric fistula happening, the most basic is a lack of information on the causes of obstetric fistula," he stated.
If this information is available, it can lead to community-level efforts to alleviate or eliminate delays in accessing a health institution.
"Understanding that a girl must complete her growth before marrying and producing children will inure to preventing child marriages and other detrimental traditional practices," he said.
Dr. Gyanyaglo advocated for community empowerment via education about the causes of obstetric fistula, as well as sexual and reproductive health rights, as an extra safeguard in the fight against obstetric fistula.
The Obstetric Fistula Surgeon noted that there are six aspects to quality in health care: safety, effectiveness, patient-centeredness, timeliness, efficiency, and equity, and that "the theme acts as a reminder" with these quality measurements in the health care context.
Obstetric Fistula, which might be avoided if all hands were on deck, was not being given the attention it deserved, according to Dr. Gyanyaglo.
He expressed concern that funds had not been set aside to carry out activities aimed at raising awareness about Obstetric Fistula, and he urged the Ghana Health Service, the Ministries of Finance, Gender, Children and Social Protection, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, and Local Government and Rural Development to work together to address the problem.
"We need a national conversation on this, and as a country, we need to own the program to stop obstetric fistula," she said, adding, "Together, we can end fistula in Ghana."
Every year on May 23, the world commemorates International Obstetric Fistula Day to promote awareness and enhance efforts to eliminate obstetric fistula and encourage post-surgery follow-up and monitoring of fistula sufferers.
Many women and girls with obstetric fistula, damage to the birth canal caused by a lengthy and obstructed delivery, were isolated, shamed, and segregated, according to Dr. Ganyaglo.
He said that they were unable to obtain quick medical treatment owing to poverty and that this had robbed them of their health and dignity, which he described as a violation of their human rights.
"No woman or girl's dignity, hopes, or goals should be taken away from her." It's their right to do so. We should not keep them hidden or stigmatize them since shame and stigma can kill them. They require our affection and help to cure the fistula and reintegrate into society," Dr. Ganyaglo remarked.
Obstetric Fistula is a painful consequence of protracted, obstructed labor that causes urine, feces, or both to flow from the vaginal opening.
The continual stench of leaked pee, feces or both is embarrassing. If left untreated, this can lead to persistent medical issues such as ulcers and renal damage. According to a research conducted by the Ghana Health Service in 2015, roughly 1,300 new instances of fistula are diagnosed each year, but only about 100 are fixed, leaving 1,200 cases untreated.
Dr. Ganyaglo stated that obstetric fistula affects women across the country and encouraged people and corporations to help the government heal, rehabilitate, and empower those affected by the condition.
He counseled ladies with fistula issues to go to the hospital, and urged families with such patients to accompany them there for treatment.
Professor Anyetei Lassey, the Chairman of Ghana's National Obstetric Fistula Task Force, voiced concern over the government's inability to make treatment of Obstetric Fistula cases free, adding that if this is done, it will be a huge relief and more cases will be mended.
The International Day to End Obstetric Fistula is today. This is not a day for celebration, but rather for taking action to end OF. Let us join our hands in a coordinated effort to stop this avoidable disease.
Obstetric fistula affects between 50,000 and 100,000 women globally each year, with an estimated two million young women living with untreated obstetric fistula in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
In the industrialized world, the threat is a historical concern. However, it persists in resource-poor nations like Ghana. This is predicated on the fact that around two million women in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia are still affected.
In the meanwhile, it has been abolished in Europe and the United States, but women in poor nations continue to suffer in silence.