Guest Author - Jenna Robinson

Dr. Catherine Hamlin has dedicated her life to a hospital in Africa. This hospital is located in Addis Abala in Ethiopia. The work done here is to restore the lives to young women who are given in marriage at the tender age of 12 or 13 years old. Their bodies are not ready for child birth and during the course of their labor they are left with a possible still born child and a hole in their bladder and/or rectum called a fistula. For the rest of their lives they live in seclusion suffering from leakage and the stench of waste. Dr. Catherine came here with her husband Reginald Hamlin in 1974 to help fix this problem for these women so they can have a healthy long life.

Many of these women are shunned by their families and even their husbands. With Dr. Catherine’s help they can have a normal life and go on to even have children again. Many of these women go on to have wonderfully happy lives. Thanks to Dr. Catharine and the Fistula Hospital.

There is no income except donations. It costs $450.00 for each surgery for each woman. But what is the cost for happiness and hope? How much are you willing to give to restore hope to a hopeless situation? The greatest gift of all is to restore hope in the heart of another person. Dr. Catharine Hamlin is doing God’s work. We can help. Click on the link to the right to read more about Dr. Catharine Hamlin and the Fistual Hospital.



“The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital won the award for outstanding achievement as an institution. Founded in 1974, it uniquely specializes in the treatment and care of women living with obstetric fistula, a devastating childbirth injury that damages a woman’s birth canal and leaves her incontinent. The hospital provides free medical care to over 1,200 women annually and has treated over 25,000 women. It uses a holistic approach to restore the health and dignity of fistula sufferers and offers literacy classes, physiotherapy and support to help women rejoin their communities once they are cured. The hospital has also become a teaching institution for surgeons throughout Ethiopia and the developing world.”
2004 United Nations Population Award

The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital in Ethiopia treats women suffering from obstetric fistula, a debilitating childbirth injury that is still common in the developing world. More than 25,000 successful surgeries have been performed since its beginning in 1974; in addition, patients receive care in the form of physiotherapy, classes in literacy, safe motherhood, nutrition, and hygiene. Women whose injuries are too severe to be repaired and who cannot return to their villages are “adopted” by the hospital and trained as nurses aides. No woman is turned away, and all services are provided free of charge. Future plans for the hospital include the establishment of five “outreach” centers in provinces across Ethiopia. These centers will provide fistula surgery and emergency obstetric care to thousands of women who are unable to reach the main hospital in Addis Ababa. The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital was nominated by Richard Haas, President of The Fistula Foundation.
AMA Foundation Outstanding Global Health Initiative

Youc an donate today online at: Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital