A talk about women's reproductive health in the Global South. 

Presentation by Alison Heller 

In the West African country of Niger, 1 in 23 women will die from maternal causes and 5-13 more will survive with chronic disabilities. One particular injury: obstetric fistula -- caused by prolonged obstructed labor and resulting in chronic incontinence, is all too common. How are women who suffer from fistula represented in the Global North? Does it matter? What is the lived experience of chronic incontinence? Can surgery make a difference? How do local networks of care expand or contract in times of illness? Dr. Ali Heller explores these topics and presents her data from 18 months of ethnographic fieldwork in the Niger.