It Is time for Change; Women’s Views on the impact of living with obstetric fistula in Northern-Central Nigeria. An interpretive descriptive study

An obstetric fistula is an abnormal opening between the vagina, bladder, or rectum that causes uncontrolled and abnormal leaking of urine or feces. Obstetric fistula is a devastating complication of childbirth that affects over 2 million birthing women in the developing world (Ahmed et al., 2020; Mwini-Nyaledzigbor et al., 2013). In Nigeria, the prevalence of obstetric fistula is estimated at 3.2 per 100 births with an estimation of 13,000 new cases occurring annually (Bello et al., 2020; Maheu-Giroux et al., 2015). Nigeria experiences an insufficiency of healthcare providers and emergency services for birthing women, with poor access to healthcare facilities (Adewuyi et al., 2019; Bulndi et al., 2022). Therefore, this study aimed to shed light on the women’s views on the impact of living with obstetric fistula in Northern-Central Nigeria. Aims: To explore women’s Views on the impact of living with obstetric fistula in Northern- Central Nigeria and the need for change. Qualitative, interpretative descriptive methodology underpinned by symbolic interactionism involving face-to-face semi-structured interviews with 15 women. Setting. A purposive sample of 15 women who had experienced obstetric fistula at a repair Centre in North Central Nigeria were eligible. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data in the participant’s first language, Hausa. A thematic approach to data analysis was employed, which involved reading and re-reading the transcript to get a deep understanding of the main issues described Participants' words or phrases (Braun & Clarke, 2021; Moser & Korstjens, 2018) relevant to research questions were coded these codes were then sorted into several sub-themes, which were then collapsed into major themes. Three core themes are. i) ‘‘Fighting a lonely battle alone ’ii) ‘‘Everybody’s eyes were on me, seeing me as one dirty woman’’ and iii) ‘‘They will be pointing the finger saying, See her’’ The study findings demonstrate the importance of obstetric fistula prevention programs and the urgency of alleviating women ‘s suffering. Creating community awareness, sensitization, and rehabilitating obstetric fistula sufferers into the community are important strategies.