School of Nursing and Midwifery, The Aga Khan University, PO Box 13129, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Behavioural Sciences Department, School of Public Health and Social Sciences, Muhimbili University of Health & Allied Sciences, PO Box 65004, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
BMC Womens Health. 2019 Jul 10;19(1):93. doi: 10.1186/s12905-019-0799-x.
Obstetric fistula is among the serious and distressing maternal morbidities in Tanzania. Obstetric fistula is a childbirth-related injury caused by prolonged and obstructed labor which has a devastating impact on affected women and their families. The aim of this study was to explore reasons why women with obstetric fistula admitted to the Comprehensive Community- Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania (CCBRT) hospital delayed seeking fistula treatment.
This exploratory study incorporated qualitative approach. In-depth interviews were used to collect data from 18 women with obstetric fistula admitted to CCBRT hospital. The interviews were conducted in Kiswahili and lasted for 40-45 min. Audio-recordings of the interviews were transcribed verbatim and translated into English. Thematic analysis was used to extract reasons for the delay in seeking treatment for obstetric fistula.
The study sample (n = 18) ranged in age from 20 to 57 (μ = 37; SD = 11.67), married (n = 14), unemployed (n = 15), and very low level education (n = 15) with primary education. Delay in seeking treatment for obstetric fistula was related to the following themes: inadequate knowledge about the causes and treatment of obstetric fistula, distance and transport cost to a health facility, stigma, community isolation, social isolation and use of traditional and cultural.
The Tanzanian Ministry of Health in collaboration with private institutions should strengthen education programmes on the nature and causes of obstetric fistula, and increase the availability of treatment to decrease the effect of this condition for women in Tanzania.
产科瘘是坦桑尼亚严重且令人痛苦的产妇病之一。产科瘘是由产程延长和受阻引起的分娩相关损伤，对受影响的妇女及其家庭造成毁灭性影响。本研究旨在探讨坦桑尼亚综合社区康复中心（CCBRT）医院收治的产科瘘妇女延迟寻求瘘治疗的原因。
本探索性研究采用定性方法。对 18 名入住 CCBRT 医院的产科瘘妇女进行深入访谈，以收集数据。访谈以斯瓦希里语进行，持续 40-45 分钟。访谈的音频记录逐字转录并翻译成英语。使用主题分析从延迟寻求产科瘘治疗的原因中提取主题。
研究样本（n=18）年龄在 20 至 57 岁之间（μ=37；SD=11.67），已婚（n=14）、失业（n=15）、教育程度极低（n=15），仅接受过小学教育。延迟寻求产科瘘治疗与以下主题有关：对产科瘘的原因和治疗缺乏了解、到卫生机构的距离和交通费用、耻辱感、社区隔离、社会隔离以及传统和文化的使用。
坦桑尼亚卫生部应与私立机构合作，加强有关产科瘘性质和原因的教育计划，并增加治疗的可及性，以减少这种情况对坦桑尼亚妇女的影响。
