Imagine a World…Where the nearest health facility is a two-day walk away. mWhere the risk of dying from pregnancy or childbirth is 1 in 16. This is the world where millions of women live – a world where childbirth injuries are far too common. Childbirth injuries like obstetric fistula are a result of prolonged obstructed labor where C-section delivery is not possible. Often, women are in labor for days and the babies are stillborn.These grieving mothers are left with internal damage that causes them to leak urine or feces, or both, uncontrollably. In many cases, they are rejected by their communities and left to live in isolation.
But these injuries are preventable and treatable.The Holistic Model of Care Our vision is a world without childbirth injuries. Maternal Health Fund supports world-renowned doctors, researchers, hospitals that treat women with cutting-edge, compassionate care and rural healthcare clinics to ensure all mothers can have safe births.
Our Beginnings
Our history continues to drive our evolving work today.
The Hamlin Legacy
Two talented OB/GYNs, Dr. Catherine Hamlin (RIP 2020) from Australia and her husband, Dr. Reginald Hamlin (RIP 1993) from New Zealand, came to Ethiopia in 1959 for a three-year stint to establish a midwifery school. However, they became sidetracked upon finding so many women suffering from a condition they knew nothing about. So they learned. After 15 years of treating a serious childbirth injury known as obstetric fistula, they achieved a major milestone: They established in 1974 the world-famous women’s healthcare facility, Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital (AAFH), also known as Hamlin Hospital.
Drs. Hamlin’s extraordinary commitment created a foundation of care slowly building to groundbreaking work.
They pioneered new surgical techniques and treated 60,000 women and girls by the time of Dr. Catherine’s death in 2020 at the age of 96.
Dr. Catherine raised international funds, appearing on the Oprah Winfrey show to spread the word.
Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital brought many worldwide non-profit organizations together to expand on this work and train fistula surgeons.
“My dream is to eradicate obstetric fistula from Ethiopia. I won’t achieve this in my lifetime, but you can in yours.”
Dr. Catherine Hamlin, Founder of Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia
Establishing Maternal Health Fund
Maternal Health Fund began as Hamlin Fistula USA in 2010 by supporting the effective and inspirational work of Drs. Reginald and Catherine Hamlin.
To continue expansion beyond Hamlin Hospital, in 2019, we changed our name to Maternal Health Fund.
Our Vision has been and will always be, “A world without childbirth injuries.” No childbirth injuries means healthy babies and healthy mothers, no infant deaths and no obstetric fistulas.
