Fistula Foundation
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| Founded | 2000 |
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| Location | San Jose, California |
| Area served | Africa and Asia |
| Focus | Humanitarian |
| Method | Aid |
| Motto | Help Give A Young Woman A New Life |
| Website | www.fistulafoundation.org |
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The Fistula Foundation is dedicated to raising awareness of and funding for obstetric fistula treatment, prevention and education programs worldwide. The Foundation is the largest private organization dedicated solely to fighting fistula globally.
It is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization which was founded in 2000. It is headquartered in San Jose, California. Since its inception it has raised more than $20 million from donors throughout the United States. Until 2008, the Foundation supported only the work of Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia, founded by Dr. Catherine Hamlin and her late husband Reginald Hamlin. Since 2009, the Foundation has extended its reach to more than 25 grantees in 16 countries across Africa and South Asia. However, the Foundation remains the largest single supporter of Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia.
Although the Foundation funds projects for awareness and prevention of fistula, its primary focus is supporting treatment, either directly through fistula repair surgeries, or indirectly through training and the provision and equipping of medical facilities. Countries in which the Foundation has supported projects include: Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Somaliland, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda.
The Foundation is a partner of the United Nations Population Fund’s Campaign to End Fistula. Other partners include: Women and Health Alliance (WAHA), Direct Relief International, the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) and the International Society of Obstetric Fistula Surgeons (ISOFS).
The Foundation has a ten-member national Board of Directors; the chair is Ethiopian-American Kassy Kebede and the Executive Director is Kate Grant. The Foundation meets all Better Business Bureau Standards of Charity Accountability and has received the top 4-Star Rating from Charity Navigator for the last five years placing it in the top 5% of charities nationwide.[1] The Foundation was a primary sponsor of the documentary film A Walk to Beautiful which won the Best Feature-Length Documentary of 2007 from the International Documentary Association.[2] as well as an Emmy for best long form documentary in 2008. The film tells the story of five Ethiopian women treated by Dr. Hamlin and her staff at the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital. PBS's NOVA is the other major sponsor of the documentary.[3] More recently, the Foundation has been mentioned several times by Nicholas D. Kristof in the New York Times and has become a Google grant recipient.
[edit] References
1. ^ http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=8855 2. ^ http://www.documentary.org/programs/awards.php 3. ^ http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/beautiful/
[edit] External links
- official Fistula Foundation website
- The Global Library of Women's Medicine: Safer Motherhood Section - Non-profit offering freely downloadable material, including Fistula surgery, for healthcare professionals.
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