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Discover the people and the projects trying to make the world a better place

Discover the people and the projects trying to make the world a better place.

Discover the people and the projects trying to make the world a better place.

A weekly programme looking at common challenges around the world and the creative ways people are trying to tackle them.

Presenter Myra Anubi speaks to reporters, experts and innovators to investigate how effective different solutions are, share their successes and inspire listeners with what is possible.

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People Fixing The World: The mums saving each other from a taboo condition

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The mums saving each other from a taboo condition

02/04/2019 GMT

BBC World Service - People Fixing The World, The mums saving each other from a taboo condition

Women who have had surgery for fistula are making sure others get life-changing treatment

Women in Madagascar who have had surgery for fistula are making sure others get similar life-changing treatment free of charge.

"Get rid of the girl who smells" - this is the reaction thousands of traumatised new mothers face every year. A prolonged or obstructed childbirth can lead to a condition called obstetric fistula, where women are left incontinent, continually leaking urine and faeces. Without treatment they often become socially isolated.  
 
But in Madagascar, some women who have successfully been treated for fistula become patient ambassadors. They travel on foot to remote villages to find and help others with the same condition.  They personally accompany them to clinics to get life-changing surgery and support.  Afterwards, those women return to their villages and begin campaigning for other women to seek care.  
 
Many medical organisations around the world are waking up to the power of the patient's voice - patient ambassadors can resonate with vulnerable groups in a way that other kinds of outreach can't.  
 
Producer: Amelia Martyn-Hemphill

(Photo: Felicia - a patient ambassador in Madagascar)

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