Uterine Prolapse, Mobile Camp Approach and Body Politics in Nepal

Various studies show that more than 600,000 women in Nepal are suffering from prolapsed uterus and that 200,000 of those needed immediate surgery. Many of the women with prolapse could recall the exact moment they first felt the prolapse and found difficulty to share the problems due to fear of stigma. Stories ranged from seven days immediately after the first delivery to after the birth of the fifth or sixth child; during cooking rice to sneezing and long coughing; fetching water in a big bucket to working in the field. If detected at an early stage, uterine prolapse (UP) can be controlled by pelvic exercises. For severe cases, the remedy is to insert a ring pessary to stop it from descending which has to be changed every four months. In extreme cases, uterine tissue protrudes from the vagina causing extreme discomfort. The only remedy is hysterectomy in which the uterus is surgically removed. The operation costs are about NRs 20,000. The Government of Nepal and other donor organizations have allocated funds to provide services to about 10,000 to 12,000 women suffering from uterine prolapse as humanitarian support each year and services are likely to be expanded in future. Women suffering from UP have not been able to get benefit from such assistance due to deep rooted socio-cultural perceptions and practices. The number of suffering women, on the other hand, would not decrease from existing curative management policy without hammering the root causes of UP. Moreover, a clear vision and strategy is needed to shift from humanitarian aid to a more sustainable public health intervention.Keywords: Camp Approach; Humanitarian Aid; Socio-cultural Practices; Sustainable Policy; Uterine Prolapse DOI: 10.3126/dsaj.v4i0.4511 Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology and Anthropology Vol.4 2010 pp.21-40

Hysterectomy · Obstetrics · Pessary · Political science · Politics · Uterine prolapse · Uterus · Vagina · Maternal and Perinatal Health Interventions · Medicine · Nursing · Pelvic and Acetabular Injuries · Pelvic floor disorders treatments · Surgery

• Cervical cancer prevention behaviors and determinants among Indigenous women in rural Nepal

  Open Access•Babita Bhetwal, Vinita Sharma et al.•Health Promotion International•2026

  Incluir item

• Humanitarian response to reproductive and sexual health needs in a disaster

  Open Access•Pushpa Chaudhary, Giulia Vallese et al.•Reproductive Health Matters•2017

  Incluir item

• Contractual Transaction

  Open Access•M Subedi•Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology…•2015

  Incluir item

• The Importance of Positionality for Qualitative Researchers

  Open Access•Hannah Gurr, Louise Oliver et al.•Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology…•2024

  Incluir item

• The Birth of the Clinic

  Michel Foucault•Birth of the Clinic•2002

  Incluir item

• The Elementary Forms of Religious Life

  Emile Durkheim, Ward Swain•AJN American Journal of Nursing•1916

  Incluir item

• "Listening to "Felt Needs

  Tiphaine Ravenel Bonetti, Anne Erpelding et al.•Reproductive Health Matters•2004

  Incluir item

• When is a Marriage Not a Marriage? Sex, Sacrament and Contract in Hindu Marriage

  Open Access•Patricia Uberoi•Contributions to Indian Sociology•1995

  Incluir item

• The Elementary Forms of Religious Life

  Emile Durkheim, Carol Cosman et al.•The Elementary Forms Of Religious…•2009

  Incluir item

• Defining Women's Health

  Open Access•M C Inhorn•Medical Anthropology Quarterly•2006

  Incluir item