The Sunday News
Robin Muchetu, Senior Reporter
Mrs Senelisiwe Hlatshwayo, a teacher in Bulawayo, never imagined she would one day be embarrassed about her own urine, embarrassed in that it would be leaking involuntarily for months every single day.
However, she lives to tell the tale of her uncomfortable condition.
“I had fibroids so I went for an operation to remove them as I was bleeding. After that it was hell, I could not believe that it was happening to me. When you read about some conditions you never imagine they can happen to you. My bladder had been traumatised during the operation,” she said.
She said what she felt was like someone was pouring water down a cracked bucket, urine was pouring down her tights constantly.
“I went back to the hospital because it was just two days after I had been discharged after the fibroids operation. I told them I was leaking urine. I was given tablets but they couldn’t stop the condition. I was referred to a local gynaecologist. I was bleeding at the same time,” she said.
She added that she was taken to theatre and it was discovered that she had damaged vaginal fistula, which means she had uncontrolled passage of urine following damage to the bladder. The doctors could not operate because she was yet to heal from the fibroids operation so it was suggested she waits for three months, which she refused. That was in April 2015 when she got the condition and before the three moths lapsed she went under the knife.
“I was crying all the time because I could not believe it. I had no physical pain but emotional one. I thought of my children and my job because I now had to go to work with a sanitary pad everyday and a catheter to drain the urine too,” said Mrs Hlatshwayo.
She said she felt her life was completely destroyed. A person with damaged fistula cannot control her bladder movement, so urine continuously leaks.
“When you are leaking urine you always smell, imagine the smell of adult urine. I was so embarrassed,” she added.
She was hospitalised as they were trying to control the bleeding and the urine leakage. While in hospital it was not easy for her. In order to ensure she was a little dry she had to buy linen servers for $10 a pack and would use up the 10 linen servers in two days. This prevented her blankets from getting wet.
“I also constantly used cotton wool and pads all the time. The challenge was after the fibroid operation I was told to drink a lot of water to clean out my system so it made the situation worse. I stayed for a long time in hospital as I would get infections and my blood pressure was always high and doctors could not operate on me in that state,” she said.
Her husband was very supportive during that time, he ensured she had $5 at each hospital visit to buy cotton wool as she spent one 500g pack each night and that took a toll on their finances as he was not employed then and having spent over three months away from work her salary was inadequate.
“After the first operation to correct the fistula I had to return to work and I was clueless on how I was going to operate because I was still leaking urine.
I had to go to work to save my job at the same time I had this embarrassing condition. So the doctor advised me to tie the catheter bag on my thigh then put the cotton wool and pad and I was off to work.
“The smell is what killed me; I could feel it and I had no self confidence, however, the staff and school head were very supportive. Some of my workmates took my classes to make the burden easier. But it was painful in front of students, I never thought I would be normal again,” she said.
Asked on what saved her life, she said she had a job and had a good support system. She thought of other people who had the same condition who were not employed and had no medical aid to talk about. The money needed was definitely going to be a lot and maybe they would not even be able to pay.
“I was in hospital with a woman who had the same condition, she could not afford to buy the required cotton wool or linen servers so most of the time she would be soaking wet and that was not good,” she added.
She however, said when one was ill people come with all sorts of remedies that were non-medical and it was unfortunate that people sought assistance from non-medical people yet it would be purely a medical condition that needed proper medical treatment. Some people however, never understood her condition.
“I had challenges when I would go to the hospital and I find queues, I would try and explain to some of the hospital staff to assist me to jump the queue but they never understood. So I would just wet myself all over and it was embarrassing. They never understood that the urine was coming out continuously,” she said.
As she was awaiting another operation to correct the damaged vaginal fistula, Mrs Hlatshwayo said she had trouble at home.
“Sleeping in my own bed was not an option because I would wet the bed so I was forced to sleep on the floor and wash blankets all the time. I also could not sit on the sofas as I would wet them too. Sex was out of the picture as I was scared to reopen the wound and again I had a catheter which meant I could not indulge,” she said.
However, on the third operation on 30 September 2015 the problem was finally rectified and life went back to normal. Afterwards she said she decided to write a book about her experience and it will be out in a couple of months.
Parliamentarians have raised concern over the treatment of fistula, especially in young children.
Senator Sithembile Mlotshwa of Matabeleland South Province said the Government should look into the issue of treating fistula for free in Government hospitals. She was speaking with regards to the children who develop fistula when they fall pregnant while they are young due to child marriages.
“There is one place that we are not looking at as Government, that is the impact of young children falling pregnant. They get what is called fistula. I have been searching high and low in terms of what our Government can do to deal with fistula. What I have discovered is that Non-Governmental Organisations come and offer treatment of fistula rather than our own,” she said.
She said the Ministry of Health and Child Care should look at the issue of treating fistula seriously and offer the services for free, especially with young girls who fall pregnant and develop the condition. A gynaecologist who preferred not to be named said when labour was prolonged in a pregnant woman there was a challenge that one could damage their bladder.
“This prolonged labour creates a hole between the vagina, bladder or rectum where the woman involuntarily passes urine and or faeces. Other trauma to the area such as rape can damage the woman and she leaks urine, as for Mrs Hlatshwayo it was trauma to the bladder during an operation. With the other women it is falling pregnant when they are very young and the body cannot contain the changes,” she said.
The Ministry of Health and Child Care this year declared Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital as the centre for all obstetric fistula repairs in Zimbabwe. Over 500 women have been on the waiting list to get assistance and the ministry says more women and young girls are suffering in silence.
