Village Health Partnership

For many women living with fistula injuries, the physical damage is only part of the hardship.

Years of illness can leave families financially devastated. Women are often unable to work, care for their households, or participate in daily community life.

That’s why rehabilitation includes more than medical care. It includes physical therapy, social reintegration assistance, and economic mentorship and support.

After recovery, women in Village Health Partnership’s rehabilitation program receive gardening training and sheep or chickens to help them begin rebuilding economic stability for themselves and their families.

Healing also means restoring independence, dignity, and hope for the future.

Many women recovering from fistula injuries have spent years isolated from their communities.

Some were unable to work. Others stopped attending church, visiting markets, or gathering with neighbors because of shame and stigma.

Part of rehabilitation is helping women re-enter community life with dignity.

Our partners in Ethiopia walk alongside women through this process: hosting women for visits with family, attending church and walking to market together, connecting them with mental health resources and counseling, and rebuilding connection one step at a time.

No woman should have to heal alone.

Martha Deressa is a certified nurse-midwife and the Project Manager of our rehabilitation program for women recovering after fistula repair surgery. She is also a passionate advocate for women suffering from childbirth injuries.

She has worked with the Ministry of Health and at Dembi Dollo Hospital. Today, she supports women recovering from fistula injuries through compassionate, community-centered care.

Recovery is not only physical. Many women arrive carrying deep emotional wounds after experiencing shame and isolation.

Martha helps women rebuild confidence, reconnect with community, and begin imagining a future again.

For many women living with childbirth injuries, surgery is only the beginning of healing.

After fistula repair, many women are still weak from malnutrition, prolonged illness, and years of isolation. Some have spent months or years confined to bed while managing constant leakage of urine and/or f***s without access to water to bathe.

That’s why Village Health Partnership partners with local leaders to support recovery beyond surgery through nutrition, physical rehabilitation, counseling, and community reintegration.

Healing takes more than an operation. It takes support, dignity, and community.

Surgery is not the end of the journey.

For women living with childbirth injuries, healing takes time. After treatment, many must regain their strength, rebuild their confidence, and re-enter the communities they were once forced to leave behind.

The physical healing is only one part of recovery. There is also emotional and social healing, and the slow process of returning to daily life.

Over time, our partners saw that treatment alone was not always enough. Some women needed additional support as they recovered. They needed community and the chance to rebuild their lives.

So, together with our partners, we began building a rehabilitation program. This program is a place for women to continue healing, regain physical and emotional strength, and reconnect with their community.

At the center of VHP’s Screen, Transport, and Treat Program is Aira Hospital.

Aira Hospital has become a leading center for women’s health in western Ethiopia. Today, women arrive from some of the most remote and underserved areas to receive care they could not access anywhere else.

At Aira, patients are treated by dedicated medical teams who are committed to restoring health and dignity. When cases are too complex, the system does not stop there. Women are referred to specialized care at the renowned Hamlin Fistula Hospital in Addis Ababa, ensuring they receive the treatment they need.

This is what real access to care looks like. We are not just reaching women, but building an entire system of care that can treat them.

Because every mother deserves a chance to heal.

At first, we had to search for women in need of care.

Now, they are finding us.

In communities across western Ethiopia, women are sharing what they’ve learned. They are telling their neighbors, their sisters, and their friends that treatment and healing are possible.

And when our partners arrive to screen patients, they are no longer met with silence.

They are met with lines of women waiting.

Women who have come forward.
Women who are asking for help.
Women who now know they are not alone.

This is how change begins: not just by reaching women, but by building trust and creating a system where women know care exists and feel empowered to seek it.

Reaching women in need of care is not simple.

In the remote villages of western Ethiopia, many women live hours or days from the nearest health facility. Some cannot travel. Others do not know that treatment is possible.

So we go to them.

Through our Screen, Transport, and Treat Program, local partners travel deep into rural communities to find women living with treatable childbirth injuries. They work with community leaders to raise awareness and build trust so women feel safe coming forward.

This work is not easy. The region is affected by ongoing conflict, and reaching these communities can be dangerous and unpredictable. But still, they go.

Because no woman should be left to suffer simply because of where she lives.

And when a woman is found, the journey is not over. We help ensure she can reach care and that treatment is available when she arrives.

This is how healing begins.

Miraje lives in a remote area of western Ethiopia.

When she went into labor with her first child, she labored at home for more than ten hours without a trained birth attendant. By the time she reached a hospital, she required surgery to deliver her baby. Afterward, she developed a childbirth injury that changed her life.

She lived with constant discomfort and isolation. She withdrew from her community. Like many women, she could not afford the care she needed.

For years, she suffered in silence.

Through VHP’s Screen, Transport, and Treat Program, Miraje was identified and brought to Aira General Hospital for treatment. Her first surgery was not successful.

But she did not give up, and neither did the care team supporting her.

After a second surgery, Miraje healed.

Today, she is no longer living in isolation. She is back in her community, living her life with dignity and connection.

Her journey was not easy. But healing was possible.

There are still women waiting to be found, who are waiting for a second chance like Miraje’s.

With your support, we can reach them, bring them to care, and help restore their lives.

Give today and be part of their story. Link in bio.

Elfinesh lives in a remote area of western Ethiopia. When she went into labor with her first child, she labored for hours at home without any trained support. By the time she reached a hospital, she was on the verge of death. Her life was saved, but her baby was not.

In the years that followed, she lived with a childbirth injury that caused constant leakage of urine and deep physical and emotional pain.

She became isolated from her community. She could not afford treatment.

For three years, this was her reality. Until she was found.

Through VHP’s Screen, Transport, and Treat Program, Elfinesh was identified, transported to care, and received the surgery she needed to heal.

Today, her health has been restored. She is no longer living in isolation. She is back in her community, living her life again.

Healing is possible. But too many women are still waiting.

Your support helps us find them, bring them to care, and restore their dignity.

Give today and be part of her story. Link in bio.