
Obstetric fistula could be considered one of the worst, though still poorly recognized, consequences of inadequate maternal health insurance in the third world. Mental Health First Aid, It develops after abnormal or difficult labour and designs an abnormal passage in the area between the vulva and the anus or between the bladder and rectum. Moreover, the following article will look at the following areas including What is Obstetric Fistula? Its effects, How to address and prevent Obstetric Fistula aiming at abolishing the vice, and finally the importance of adding to the Maternal Health structures across the globe to avoid further Disaster.
The effects of this condition to the women are huge, they are separated from family and friends, rejected and have no access to anything. But there is a slow transition now through awareness programs, availability of inexpensive and advanced health facilities and treatments all over the world. From this article the reader will find out more about the multiple impacts of obstetric fistula and also find out efforts being taken to do away with it and lastly, stress the need to ensure every woman globally be availed with quality, sustainable and affordable maternal healthcare services for every woman who has been forced into secreting this complication.
Mental Health First Aid: What is Obstetric Fistula?

Obstetric fistula is a damaging complication of childbirth that often occurs in low-technology environments and the developing world. This is where labour is long and, perhaps because a skilled birth attendant was not available, the obstructing structure compresses the birth canal and in the process starves the tissue of blood supply, leading to a tear on the bladder/rectum. Consequently, women with obstetric fistula suffer from lifelong urinary and/or fecal incontinence; many of them remain socially isolated because of the nature of their problem.
Not only does it become a detriment to a woman’s physical health but her mental health is affected and she suffers from loneliness, guilt, and hopelessness. Some of the women who develop obstetric fistula find themselves ostracized from society because of the regular discharge of urine or feces. Even though its effects are devastating, obstetric fistula remains easily avoidable given early treatment However, millions of women from developing nations remain untreated by abundant healthcare services or lack sufficient knowledge about the condition.
Mental Health First Aid: The Key Causes of Obstetric Fistula

- Prolonged and Obstructed Labor: Some of the problems that might occur include obstructed labor, which would require skilled medical attention that these women cannot afford.
- Lack of Access to Emergency Obstetric Care: In many developed countries, this segment suffers from extremely limited health care resources. Hospitals or clinics may be far off or the workers do not have implements for that can manage complications such as obstructed labor which leads to fistula.
- Child Marriage and Early Pregnancies: Early mothers are more inclined to have early pregnancies and their body may not have developed adequately to support giving birth. This makes labour complicated particularly fistula formation and other related complications.
- Inadequate Maternal Health Education
In many women who work and live in poor areas, they lack adequate knowledge concerning maternal health hence improper diet, no antenatal care, and delayed medical attention during delivery.
The Impact of Fistula on Women’s Lives

The impact which social, psychology and economics have, are profound. This results in seclusion and adds to the mental pressure where Hopeless, depressed, worthless feelings can be so overpowering at times. About their economic status, these women are the most affected—most of the time, they are unable to work, take care of their families hence are economically mobile. Apart from poverty, the price they have to pay for fistula repair treatment – the medical treatment they can rarely afford – is an added misfortune which puts them into a long term cycle of pain.
This multivariate calamity prevents women from escaping out of their misery. They can also despise the parental care they get and lack of support from their immediate family, and the larger society. The economic cost is also humongous since ladies in the developing countries depend on their capacity to work for the upkeep of their families. Of course, obstetric fistula is about the physical pain but it is bigger issue related to the dignity, identity and human life of women.
Conclusion

Every woman should have a right to give birth safely and every woman should have a right to leave her home without being ashamed. It should make people around the world come together and push for increased education about the vice and better healthcare to completely eradicate this silent tragedy and say no to any woman experiencing the horrors of obstetric fistula in the 21st century.
There is a potential for communities, governments, NGOs, and providers of care to band together and fight this silent killer.We have to keep on educating the world, advocating for increased health care access and pushing for policies that will guarantee that every woman becomes empowered and gives birth safely. Obstetric fistula is preventable – and with committed and sustained action today, we can build that future where all women have the right to a healthy and fulfilling life.
Read More: Early Detection Screening Programs
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