*Services in Mali were supported under the previous Fistula Care project (2007-2013). Visit the Countries page to learn about countries currently supported under the new Fistula Care Plus project
Mali is a richly diverse country in West Africa, with northern borders reaching deep into the Sahara Desert. The average Malian woman will have seven children in her lifetime, as just 7% of the population use modern contraception. Although the majority of women who live in the capital, Bamako, give birth in a hospital, 85% of Malians live in rural areas, where access to antenatal and obstetric care is often limited. It is unknown how many women have fistula in Mali, but one study of 2,000 villages in the region of Mopti indicated that there is at least one woman living with fistula in half of the rural villages surveyed.
Before the crisis in the northern part of the country, Fistula Care primarily partnered with the Gao Regional Hospital and local NGOs to strengthen the availability of quality fistula treatment services in the region of Gao. This included working with four district referral hospitals around the Gao Hospital – Bourem, Menaka, Ansongo and Gao – to reinforce the capacity of these facilities to prevent fistula, as well as diagnose and refer fistula clients for treatment to the regional hospital. Because Gao Hospital was ransacked by armed rebels and insecurity presides across northern Mali, Fistula Care extended support to public sector hospitals in Kayes and Sikasso. Fistula Care also provided technical support to the regional hospitals of Segou and Mopti and at Point G Hospital in Bamako to improve the delivery of fistula services throughout Mali.
Fistula Care activities in Mali were implemented by IntraHealth International at two hospitals:
Program Results: 2008 – 2013
- A total of 460 fistula repair surgeries supported.
- Eighteen doctors and 311 nurses trained in fistula surgery and management.
- Over 200 doctors and nurses trained on safe motherhood-related topics.
- 184 people trained in fistula counseling.
Supported Sites
Kayes Hospital is a regional tertiary referral hospital in western Mali that served a population of approximately 120,000 residents, as well as provided referral and evacuation services for the populations of 7 health districts (a total regional population of more than 1,996,000). The hospital has a capacity of 133 beds and offers the following services: obstetrics and gynecology, surgery, pediatrics, internal medicine, anesthesia/intensive care, ophthalmology, ENT, dentistry, medical imaging, laboratory/pharmacy and physiotherapy.
Sikasso Hospital is a regional tertiary referral hospital located in the southeast of Mali tht served a population of approximately 200,000 residents, as well as provided referral and evacuation services for the populations of 8 health districts (a total regional population of more than 2,625,000). The hospital has a capacity of 135 beds and offers the following services: obstetrics and gynecology, surgery, pediatrics, internal medicine, anesthesia/intensive care, ophthalmology, ENT, dentistry, medical imaging, laboratory/pharmacy, physiotherapy, cardiology and infectious diseases.