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Kudzai Chikiwa, Chronicle Reporter

The United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) is set to open an obstetric fistula clinic, the first such health facility in the southern region of the country after the United Nations Development Fund (UNDP) provided funding for its construction.

The clinic will cater for women suffering from urinary incontinence which is referred to as involuntary urination due to uncontrolled leakage of urine. 

The condition is common in women usually caused by pelvic surgery, pregnancy, childbirth and menopause.

In an interview, the UBH acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mr Richard Sithole said the hospital is looking forward to opening the clinic before year end.

He said they received US$86 000 from the UNDP to construct the clinic.

“UNDP gave us these funds to put infrastructure and we are almost complete with the structure. This is the first clinic to be put in a public hospital in the southern region as we have one in Chinhoyi,” he said.

Mr Sithole said the clinic has two theatres, one for operations and the other for other maternal services.

“This surgery is critical for women because it’s a condition that many women suffer from but they have nowhere to be treated. Private hospitals that offer such health services are expensive for an ordinary patient so this has come as a rescue for members of the public,” he said.

Mr Sithole said the hospital needs drugs and equipment for the clinic. “Our doctors are already equipped and are waiting for a large space to work on. For now they are attending to a few critical cases,” he said.

“The majority of women with this condition do not know that it is something that should be treated. When they come for some other treatment like pregnancy check, through comprehensive screening, medical practitioners discover that the women have such conditions and they are referred for treatment.”

 Mr Sithole said psychologically the detrimental effects of incontinence can be reduction in self-esteem, depression, social withdrawal and sexual dysfunction.

“Urinary incontinence is not generally a great threat to life, it is more often an everyday annoyance and because of this can lead to emotional distress. However if incontinence is left untreated, complications can occur including, candida infection (commonly referred to as thrush), skin infections and blood poisoning,” he said. — @tamary98