An unsung hero in Ethiopia

Here is a great article talking about an unsung here named Dr. Catherine Hamlin who has devoted her life to helping young women in Ethiopia.  While this article mentions nothing about faith, it was faith in God that first motivated Catherine and her late husband Dr. Reg Hamlin to move to Ethiopia over 50 years ago.  This wooing of them to Ethiopia is talked about at length in their book, "The Hospital by The River," but was left out of a documentary done by Nova last year titled, "A Walk to Beautiful."   By the way, Dr. Hamlin is now in her 80's and still practicing medicine among the forgotten in Ethiopia.  The article below is from www.nazret.com (10/13/2009).

Ethiopia - Catherine Hamlin should have been awarded Nobel Peace Prize not Obama
Much has been said whether Obama truly deserves the Nobel Peace Prize. Obama is a great communicator but he surely does not deserve the Nobel Peace Prize, for the very simple fact that he has nothing to show for it. The Nobel committee in Oslo may need to pay a visit to Ethiopia, to witness what Dr. Catherine Hamlin has been working tirelessly for over 50 years in Ethiopia, providing free fistula repair surgery to poor women suffering from childbirth injuries. For us Ethiopians, she is a God sent, having changed the lives of so many women. It is way past overdue for the Nobel committee, to stop political posturing and award the prize to deserved individuals like Dr. Hamlin.

Here is a profile of Dr. Hamlin from Wiki
E. Catherine Hamlin, AC (24/01/24) is an Australian obstetrician and gynecologist, the co-founder of Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital in Ethiopia with her late husband Dr. Reg Hamlin. The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital is the world's only medical center dedicated exclusively to providing free fistula repair surgery to poor women suffering from childbirth injuries. Dr. Hamlin has been recognized by the United Nations agency UNFPA as a pioneer in fistula surgery for her development of techniques and procedures for obstetric fistula treatment.
Most patients are destitute when they arrive and cannot afford to pay for the surgery, so the surgery is provided for free. In addition to the main hospital in Ethiopia's capital, Dr. Hamlin has opened three new Hospitals in the Ethiopian cities of Bahir Dar, Mekele and Yirgalem, and she is opening two more in Harrar and Metu. The Hospital is also a global center of expertise in fistula repair and trains surgeons from around the world. In 2008, the Hospital will move more aggressively into the important area of fistula prevention with the opening of the Hamlin Midwifery College in Addis Ababa. The growing network of Hospitals -- the Hamlin Fistula Hospitals -- and the Midwifery College are supported largely by private donors in Australia, the UK and the United States. The largest of the dedicated support organizations is the Fistula Foundation, located in Santa Clara, California.

Dr. Hamlin was born in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. After graduating from the University of Sydney Medical School in 1946, she (then Catherine Nicholson) took a resident position at the Crown Street Women's Hospital under the medical directorship of Dr. Reginald Hamlin, whom she later married. In 1959, Catherine and her husband traveled to Ethiopia to establish a school of midwifery in Addis Ababa. Fifteen years later, they founded Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital. Dr. Hamlin, her late husband and their team of doctors and staff have treated more than 34,000 women, returning health and dignity to otherwise often forgotten women.

Dr. Hamlin has been awarded honorary fellowships in the medical associations of Australia, England and the United States. In 1995, Dr. Hamlin was awarded Australia's highest honour, being made a Companion of the Order of Australia. She is the author of the best-selling book The Hospital by the River. In 2004, she received the coveted "Best Practices in Global Health Award" from the Global Health Council. She has been described as a modern day "Mother Teresa" in an editorial by Pulitzer Prize winning writer Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times. Also, Dr. Hamlin appeared on the Oprah Winfrey television show in January 2004. The episode was included in Ms. Winfrey's 20-year anthology collection. Ms. Winfrey traveled to the Hospital and filmed another episode for her show, broadcast in December 2005. A new documentary, "A Walk to Beautiful," which features five Ethiopian women who are treated and cured by Dr. Hamlin and her team at the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital, will air on the PBS show NOVA in Spring of 2008. The film was produced by Engel Entertainment in New York; NOVA and the Fistula Foundation are the largest supporters of the production.