Below is the story of a 22 year-old fistula patient at the Clinica CEML. She is one of many fistula patients currently at CEML. Her story, while unique, is a representation of the lives of many women struggling with fistulas.
I have combined her responses to my questions into a story. This interview conversation was in Portuguese, and I have translated it into English.
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Her Story:
I am now 22 years old. My problem started in November 2006. I was pregnant for nine months and then passed a week at home with lots of pain. I went to a hospital in Cavango with my mother. I pushed and pushed but the baby came out dead.
Urine and feces passed through me constantly. I returned to my house in December 2006 and lived with my mother and father. I lived there for four years.
My husband left me after my baby died. He was 19 years old at the time and I was 18 years old. I do not speak to my husband anymore. He has another wife now. He never visited me at the hospital.
I saw Dr. Steve [Foster] when he visited Cavango in July 2009. I went to the consult alone. I am not sure why I went alone, but my parents did not come with me. Someone took me to the clinic in Cavango. My mother passed away in November 2009 and I used to speak to my father.
Dr. Steve and the team at Cavango suggested I come to the clinic in Lubango for a VVF repair. I came [to CEML] in April 2010. I came to Lubango with my niece. My niece and I stay in the patient’s village, [the living quarters beside the hospital for post-operative patients and their families]. Since I have been here I have still not spoken to my father. He has not yet visited me while I have been here.
I had my first operation on April 22, 2010. My first operation was to have a colostomy because of a recto-vaginal fistula. The second operation happened on June 8, 2010 to repair the recto-vaginal fistula. I will now be waiting in the patient’s village to see what the results of my repair are. If it is successful, I will have a third operation to repair my vesico-vaginal fistula. [Note: As with most repairs, more than one operation usually takes place before fistula repairs are completely successful.]
Every week I receive a 2000 Kwanza stipend. With this money I buy fish and other food for me and my niece. The money I receive helps me a lot. I like our learning classes a lot. The classes are full of mathematics and sewing. I have sewed a purse. I like these classes a lot. I learn from the nurses and my teachers. I want to learn how to read some more and to study. [Note: Many fistula patients began by learning how to write their names and doing basic single-digit addition.]
When I finish my post-operative revision in September 2010, I want to continue to study. I stopped studying at the fourth grade and want to study more. I want to pass my exams and become a teacher.
I do not know if I will get married again. But if I do, I want children in the future. I want two children. Only two children. When I finish my consults in Lubango at this clinic, I plan to return home to live with my father.
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The final part of this series will be an interview with Angela, a nurse who spent three months volunteering at the Centro Evangelico de Medicina do Lubango (CEML). Among other projects, Angela worked extensively with the obstetric fistula patients over the months.
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