Oxfam’s free health screenings are saving lives in the poor parts of Armenia. Caroline Berger talks to the women who have benefited from the programme.
Our Armenian taxi driver stares into his coffee cup, an old custom of fortune telling, and muses for a moment on the fate-shaped coffee grounds. His twinkling eyes predict “you will have good fortune”. Fate was as kind to self-assured Naira, who offers us another cup of Turkish coffee at the rural family health clinic. She smiles, “if I hadn’t taken part in Oxfam’s health screenings then I wouldn’t be here today.”
Five years ago after the birth of her first child, Naira began feeling pain.
“Everyone told me it was normal but our family doctor pushed me to attend the free screenings,” Naira tells me, explaining that the diagnosis showed she had early stages of cervical cancer. “I felt like my world was falling apart.” A diagnosis of cervical cancer can mean a lifetime sentence of infertility. Luckily for Naira, the cancer was caught early and she is now healthy with three children.
But there is still a long way to go before Armenia can replace the rose-tinted glasses of a time when healthcare was taken for granted. For many, life behind the Iron Curtain of the Soviet Union was not only an era that lacked freedom; it was also an era that promised and delivered free healthcare for all. Nearly two decades after gaining independence up to 100,000 people are living below the poverty line without basic regular healthcare. In the remote communities of Armenia, over 5,000 poor people rely on Oxfam’s health programme.
Chances of cancer reduced by 90%
Breast and cervical cancer are the biggest killers of women in Armenia. For Naira and others in this remote community, Oxfam’s free health screenings are a lifeline. Because these communities are isolated and poverty stricken, many people cannot afford to visit the nearest doctor, based several miles away from the village. Yet for many, regular check ups at the gynaecologist and screenings can mean the difference between life and death. Karine Alekhanyan, the local family doctor, who trained with Oxfam, proudly tells me, “since the introduction of regular screenings in our villages, the chances of developing invasive cancer has been reduced by 90%”. And soon village members will begin receiving lifesaving SMS messages informing them of the next free local screenings.
Here in this mountainous village close to the landlocked border of Azerbaijan there are more tales of triumphs over tragedy. 23-year-old Hasmik’s radiant smile is testament to her courage and determination to overcome the fight against cancer. Mother of two young sons, Hasmik was diagnosed with breast cancer after a routine screening. At just 20, Hasmik was faced with an impossible decision – to undergo traumatic surgery or risk the malignant cancer spreading. Oxfam supported Hasmik to attend the mammography centre in Yerevan and, as a result, she underwent lifesaving surgery. She tells me, “If these services weren’t here, then I wouldn’t be alive.”
Lobbying for quality healthcare
While the battle against cancer may be prevailing in this remote community, affordable and quality healthcare is still a luxury for most poor Armenians. Ongoing corruption at government level continues to hamper people’s basic health rights, and many residents of this quiet mountainous village have paid large sums of money for surgery that should be free of charge. Hasmik quietly tells me, “I paid $300 (US dollars) for surgery.” The local health ombudsman, Tamara, continues, “people are afraid to speak out for their rights.”
Tamara, together with Oxfam and its partner Support to Communities, is working with women like Hasmik to raise their voices and lobby the government to ensure a fair health system for all. Huge milestones on the road to free healthcare have already been achieved. This year, our lobbying activities culminated with a successful national hearing at parliament to dispute budget cuts in maternal and child healthcare. And, at least on paper, if not yet in practice, the Armenian government has committed itself to establishing a national scheme that would lead to universal access to basic healthcare services. However, there is still a long road ahead before women like Hasmik and Naira begin to see tangible changes in their poor rural communities.
I refill my coffee cup and stare into the murky shapes formed by the grounds. The patterns form a fate shaped star – I hope it means that the future of these brave and resilient women is filled with good fortune.