The lucky ones survive

Fellows Fall 2005

By Nina Alvarez

June 03, 2009

Abject poverty and inadequate obstetric care has resulted in debilitating and life threatening childbirths for many women in the developing world. Obstetric fistula, the hole between a women’s birth passage and an internal organ, a condition eradicated in the U.S., affects approximately 2 million women in developing countries.

In the fall of 2005, freelance video journalist Nina Alvarez traveled to Nigeria to produce a documentary about women's access to obstetric care.