As the readers of this blog know, obstetric fistulae are but one of the tragic outcomes of prolonged obstructed labor. Often times pregnancies pose serious health risks to both the mother and her baby.
According to a recent article in the Lancet, 342,900 mothers died worldwide in 2008 due to complications during pregnancy, childbirth, or in the 42 days after delivery. This is an unfathomable loss to the human community. While this statistic marks an improvement in the estimated number of maternal deaths (down from over 500,000 per year), it is unacceptable that nearly 1,000 women die each day from preventable consequences of pregnancy and childbirth.
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This article from Women’s e-news daily highlights an uncomfortable truth about safe motherhood…this is definitely not some other country’s issue, it belongs to us all. The news that black women in New York City “are nearly eight times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white mothers” is even more troubling in light of last week’s NY Times article that told us the number of maternal deaths worldwide has declined sharply–from something like one death every minute to one death every minute and a half.
Reading all of this news has made me really eager to see the “Deadly Delivery” panel discussion tonight at Riverside Church (read below for more details).
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film screenings and panel discussions, all free and open to the public!
Here are the details:
Time: 1230pm-3pm
Location: Advent Lutheran Church, 2504 Broadway at 93rd Street NYC
Description: “The award winning feature-length documentary A Walk to Beautiful tells the stories of five Ethiopian women who suffer from devastating childbirth injuries and embark on a journey to reclaim their lost dignity. Rejected by their husbands and ostracized by their communities, these women are left to spend the rest of their lives in loneliness and shame. They make the choice to take the long and arduous journey to the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital in search of a cure and a new life.”
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In the UK, Kalantha Brewis is walking to raise money for the Hamlin Fistula Foundation–barefoot. Here’s her story of faith in action:
It seems to me that sometimes you get an idea so odd that only the Holy Spirit could have given it to you. Why else would I find myself training for a 35 mile barefoot walk? “Take no sandals” said Jesus (Luke 10:4)
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