Photographer Speaks on Ethiopian Women's Health
Posted by Gregory Hill
on Mar 24, 2011
Sarah Forrest, a photographer with clients which include Fitness Magazine, Runner’s World, the Economist and Wine Spectator, was the guest speaker at the March 24, 2011 Topeka Rotary Club Meeting.
Her
presentation focused on a recent trip to Ethiopia for a photo story on the
effects of fistula on Ethiopian women and the medical procedures at both the
main Hamlin Fistula Hospital in Addis Ababa and at the Mekelle Fistula
Center.
Forrest’s website includes many of the photographs and stories she shared during her presentation.
The Hamlin Hospital in Addis Ababa was founded by Drs. Reginald and Catherine Hamlin in 1974. The main hospital in Addis Ababa has the capacity for 140 patients at a time and provides free fistula repair surgery to approximately 2,500 women a year. The journey to Addis Ababa may be days and days for many women. It may also require the sale of precious livestock to get her onto public transportation. The Hamlin Fistula Hospital has therefore recently constructed five mini-hospitals throughout Ethiopia, including the Mekelle hospital in the Tigray region which is featured in this essay. The Tigray region is home to 4.1 million people. There are only 4 ob-gyn's for this entire area (1 per 1 million people).
Forrest’s website includes many of the photographs and stories she shared during her presentation.
The Hamlin Hospital in Addis Ababa was founded by Drs. Reginald and Catherine Hamlin in 1974. The main hospital in Addis Ababa has the capacity for 140 patients at a time and provides free fistula repair surgery to approximately 2,500 women a year. The journey to Addis Ababa may be days and days for many women. It may also require the sale of precious livestock to get her onto public transportation. The Hamlin Fistula Hospital has therefore recently constructed five mini-hospitals throughout Ethiopia, including the Mekelle hospital in the Tigray region which is featured in this essay. The Tigray region is home to 4.1 million people. There are only 4 ob-gyn's for this entire area (1 per 1 million people).