“I was stressed, constantly worried and isolated from my community. I was living in my house as if I had some kind of contagious disease,” she said.
In Somalia, six in ten births take place without a doctor present, often leading to complications during childbirth, such as obstetric fistula.
The condition affects millions of women around the world, with those in the Arab region – especially in Yemen, Sudan and Somalia – among the worst affected, according to the UN Sexual and Reproductive Health Agency (UNFPA).
This is largely due to limited access to basic and essential maternal health care.
“An estimated 171,000 pregnant women struggle to access life-saving maternal health care,” UNFPA reports.
Moreover, the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Somalia worsens the situation.
© UNFPA/Usame Nur Hussein
Obstetric fistula patients are treated at Dayniile Hospital in Mogadishu, Somalia.
Malnutrition among pregnant and breastfeeding women has reached critical levels, further increasing the risk of pregnancy and birth-related complications such as premature birth and low birth weight in babies, the UN agency said.
Journey to healing
While recovery is a long and difficult journey, it is also marked by support and compassion from friends and communities.
A neighbor raised money for Farhiya so she could travel to Mogadishu for treatment. Unfortunately, the $800 surgery cost still put help out of reach.
Hope was sparked when another woman told her about a fistula campaign – a large-scale community effort combined with free fistula repair operations – at Dayniile Hospital.
With support from the Federal Ministry of Health, Physicians Across Continents and UNFPA, and funding from KSrelief, the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, Farhiya found strength again in her community.
Their collective support allowed her to travel to Mogadishu, where she ultimately underwent life-changing recovery surgery.
“Most of the patients who come to us come from rural areas, and each of them has their own story, some more painful than others,” said Dr. Aisha Abdulkadir Abdullahi, member of the medical team at Dayniile Hospital.
“With the continued awareness and surgical campaigns, I am hopeful that the numbers will gradually decline and one day the fistulas will be completely eradicated,” she added.
For Nince, a 35-year-old mother of three, fistula surgery has been truly life-changing.
“For five years I didn’t visit family or be invited to weddings. I was too ashamed to use public transport,” she says. “Now that I have undergone the operation and no longer leak urine, I have decided to visit my family.”
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