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Obstetric Fistula is debilitating to womanhood!
One of the major health challenges facing women in the country, which appears to be a silent issue, though very debilitating, is Obstetric Fistula (OBF).
According to reports, the OBF is one of the most devastating medical disabilities afflicting women in their reproductive age group across the globe, with the disease burden most prevalent in developing countries, including Ghana.
A conservative estimate that there are between 711 and 1352 new cases of OBF developing in Ghana each year, putting the incidence of OBF at 1.8 per 1000 births in Ghana.
The Report on the Burden of Obstetric Fistula in Ghana, co-authored and published by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the Ghana Health Services, says the medical condition is commonly caused by obstructed or prolonged labour.
It arises when the head of the baby is unable to pass through the pelvis of the woman as a result of prolonged delivery.
Consequently, a hole is created between the bladder and the vagina or the rectum and the vagina.
Poverty, lack of awareness, poor health seeking behaviours, poor referral systems, poor transportation network, scarcity of skilled birth attendant and inadequate obstetric care services are cited as the factors responsible for OBF.
So debilitating is this condition that, it causes the woman to leak feaces and or urine.
“OBF remains a constant cause of misery to women of childbearing age because of the continuous leaking of urine or feaces and the constant wetting of their clothes with offensive smell produced,” the Report on the Burden of Obstetric Fistula in Ghana says.
It further states that “some communities even consider them (women with OBF) as outcast and OBF victims are sent out of their villages because community members think the conditions is contagious.”
The cost of surgery to correct the OBF and restore the woman to normal life is said to be in the region of $300, indeed very unaffordable to the rural poor women, who are victims of the medical condition because of lack of skilled birth attendants.
It is refreshing that the UNFPA has resourced the Tamale Central Hospital to conduct OBF surgeries for free for women suffering from the condition in the six regions of the north.
Ghanaian Times is gladdened that the TCH has successfully conducted 540 OBF surgeries out of the 600 cases that came before it in the last four years.
We doff our hats to the Medical Superintendent of the TCH, Dr Mahamadu Mbiniwaya, and his team of specialists for the yeoman work and urge them to do more to alleviate our mothers from this debilitating condition.
We are sad to note that due to the stigmatisation, some women have the condition and have concealed it for 30 years because they are subject to ridicule and have been declared as outcasts in their community.
It is reassuring that the OBF is not contagious as is erroneously believed in some communities.
While acknowledging the good works by the TCH in the field of OBF health care, Ghanaian Times appeals to the health authorities to continue to do more in terms of counselling and public education to end the stigmatisation of victims of the condition.
Ghanaian Times also appeals to both the UNFPA and the government to address challenges facing the hospital, to be able to render improved health care to the public.
Source: Ghanaian Times
Troubled and anxious citizens in Damongo of the Savannah Region have expressed concerns about the number of young people, believed to be under the age of 18, involved in ‘shisha’ smoking in pubs and drinking spots within the township.
Eyewitnesses say the minors were seen patronising nightlife venues, where Shisha smoking happen in the open.
The situation has sparked renewed public concern over the enforcement of child protection laws and regulations governing the operations of entertainment centres in the municipality and country as a whole.
An eyewitness, who spoke to The Spectator on conditions of anonymity for security reasons, noted that the situation was becoming increasingly common.
“This is not a one-off incident. It is becoming very common, but residents like us cannot openly report or speak about it because our lives will be at risk,” he said.
Under Ghanaian law, minors were prohibited from patronising Shisha.
Public health experts have consistently warned that shisha use exposes users to harmful substances that can negatively affect brain development, respiratory health, and overall well-being, particularly among young people.
The residents believe the alleged incidents point to broader challenges relating to youth supervision, substance abuse, and weak enforcement of existing regulations and have called on municipal authorities, security agencies, and regulatory bodies to intensify monitoring of pubs and entertainment centres to ensure compliance with the law.
In an effort to address the menace, Mr Salisu Be-Awurbi, the Savannah Regional Minister, has led public education campaigns, engaged security agencies, and supported enforcement actions to address the rising use of illicit substances in the region.
Wura Kelly Seidu Boresah I, the Chief of Damongo, has also called on all stakeholders including parents, community leaders, institutions, and young people to actively support efforts to curb drug abuse, warning that the rising consumption of hard drugs poses a serious health threat to the future of the youth in the Savannah Region.
He also cautioned individuals involved in the sale and distribution of illicit drugs to immediately desist from the practice, stressing that offenders will face arrest and prosecution in accordance with the law.
From Geoffrey Buta, Damongo, Savannah Region
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Dr Theresa Baffour, an advocate for ending violence and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SAHM SAHW Foundation, has said that society plays a critical and pivotal role in breaking the cycle of domestic violence.
According to her, domestic violence is a major contributor of making women, who are mostly the victims, mentally derailed and unable to engage in economic activities.
She said this when the foundation called on the Ga Mantse, Nii Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, to solicit support for the initiative by the “Strong and Healthy Minds, Strong and Healthy Women” (SAHM SAHW) to combat domestic violence within the Ga State.
The visit was occasioned by the fact that domestic violence cases have become quite prevalent in the Ga communities and is retarding growth.
According to her, the canker was an impediment to national development because the victims were usually tortured and would have to go through series of therapies to return to the right state of mind.
Dr Baffour mentioned that Gender-Based Violence (GBV) places a mental toll on women, and was, therefore, important to break the cycle through comprehensive mental health support, crisis intervention and empowerment programmes in communities with high rates of GBV.
This intervention, she underscored, would help in empowering the denigrated victim of domestic violence to soundly heal, build and thrive.
Dr Baffour added that the initiative would provide holistic, trauma-informed mental health care and advocacy for young women affected by domestic violence.
According to her, the above statement would create safe spaces for healing and equipping them with entrepreneurial skills for renewed hope and empowered life.
The Ga Mantse pledged his support for the laudable initiative to combat domestic violence and also acknowledged the need to address it in the Ga State.
Further endorsement came from Justice Julia Naa-Yarley Adjei Amoah, Chief of Staff at the Office of the Ga Mantse, as she commended the team of SAHM SAHW Foundation for taking a bold step to end the canker in the Greater Accra.
She added that it was a step in the right direction to save vulnerable women from torture, stress and emotional abuse.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah
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