Malalai Maternity Hospital is one of Kabul’s busiest maternity wards, with 25,000 deliveries a year.
Over 90% of the staff here are women and it provides services to women from all over the country.
It’s like a second home for Doctor Nasrin Oryakhel.
She has been a gynaecologist and an obstetrician, as well as the hospital’s director for the last 10 years.
Her aim is to increase access to quality health care for all Afghan women.
“There’s always a need for doctors. During the Taliban period, female doctors were limited and they could only worked in two hospitals. But now there’s no limitations and they can work anywhere... but still, lots of Afghan women in remote areas don’t have access to health services.”
Under the Taliban, thousands of people were deprived of access to basic health services in different parts of Afghanistan.
Security was a problem, and health workers and centers were attacked.
But Doctor Nasrin continued providing medical care for Afghan women despite the threats from the Taliban.
“During the civil war in 1993, when I was a doctor in Malalai hospital, a female patient was brought to us. Her legs had been injured by a rocket blast and she needed blood. But her blood type was not available at the hospital. I had the same blood type, so I donated my blood to her.”
According to the World Health Organisation, Afghanistan has one of the highest maternal and infant mortality rates in the world.
But since the fall of the Taliban in 2001, maternal mortality rates have dramatically decreased thanks to the increasing number of female doctors and hospitals in the country.
Dr Nasrin’s main contribution has been to strengthen the role of women in medical professions.
She has been training hundreds of midwives and university graduates to work with her.
Midwife Farzana Meraj is now on a training course at the Malali hospital.
“Dr Nasrin trains us and solves our problems. She teaches us how to do primary surveillance for new born children and how to help women give birth.”
Dr Nasrin is also the president of the Afghan Family Health Association that implements reproductive health programs, and provides a hotline for the youth and shelters for women.
She says there’s a huge demand for female doctors.
“There’s a need for female doctors in Afghanistan because according to our culture and tradition, female patients don’t want to be treated by male doctors. That’s one of the reasons why I decided to become a doctor.”
Doctor Nasrin was recently selected by the US government for the prestigious International Women of Courage Award.
The award chooses women around the globe who have shown exceptional courage in advocating for human rights and women’s equality, often at great personal risk.
The award ceremony took place in Washington D.C., attended by the First Lady Michelle Obama.
“On behalf of the International Women of Courage Award, I would like to express my sincere appreciation and thanks for providing me with this opportunity. I’m truly humble to represent these courage. As a doctor, especially in women health issues, I’ve been very much involved in bringing of a child, a boy or a girl... who is the center of our future generation.”
Back at the hospital...
Doctor Nasrin continues her work... helping women to deliver healthy babies... training midwives and raising awareness of reproductive health.
“I’ve never thought about awards. There are other people in Afghanistan who are braver than me. When they announced my name for the award, I was really excited and my eyes filled with tears. I thought of people who have been living in war and poverty for years. This award belongs to all Afghans, especially women. By getting this award, I feel more responsible for taking care of my people.”
