Speaker Amy Boldosser-Boesch in photo with The Post reporter, Sa’ah Siona
Every October is filled with health awareness campaigns focused on women and adolescents. Known as Pink October, this month highlights breast cancer awareness while also hosting World Mental Health Day, World Sight Day, and the Day of the Girl Child. The visiting US speaker, Amy Boldosser-Boesch, tackled these key health issuesfacing Cameroonian women in an interview with The Post newspaper at the American embassy in Yaounde.
Discussing the connection between her work and these health challenges, Amy shared that both her mother and grandmother are cancer survivors. This was made possible because they had access to healthcare and education about self-checks, which facilitate early detection. She emphasized that access to mammography and screening significantly improves survival rates.
Speaker Amy Boldosser-Boesch (M) in group photo with reporters & U.S. Embassy staff
Amy Boldosser-Boesch, is Senior Technical Director for Health Policy, Advocacy, Engagement, and Integrated Health Care at Management Sciences for Health (MSH). She believes in “putting women and girls at the center of health systems.” She stated, “We need to make preventive services available not just for infectious diseases like HIV, but also for non-communicable diseases like cancer and mental health.”
She acknowledged that in a low-income setting like Cameroon, the culture of prevention remains stagnant, particularly in poorer communities where many women and girls cannot access routine health checks due to financial barriers or limited access to healthcare facilities, especially for advanced screenings like mammography.
With this in mind, she discussed Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which ensures everyone can access necessary health services without “being pushed into poverty.” She noted, “In December, we’ll have International Universal Health Coverage Day. UHC is not just about treating illness; it’s about preventing illness. These screenings prevent cancers that contribute to maternal mortality and are also very costly for health systems, making them a good investment.”
Mental health and breast cancer are two critical concerns affecting women globally. According to WHO statistics, breast cancer is the most common cancer worldwide, with around 2.3 million new cases each year. Roughly half of all breast cancers occur in women with no specific risk factors other than sex and age. Against theis backdrop, Amy stressed that UHC should prioritize prevention and initiate measures like the HPV vaccine to combat cervical cancer. “When we focus on prevention first, we save lives and reduce the need for expensive services later,” she added.
Reporters interviewing Speaker Amy at The U.S. Embassy
WHO believes that reducing global breast cancer mortality by 2.5% per year could avert 25% of breast cancer deaths by 2030 and 40% by 2040 among women under 70. These objectives can be achieved through health promotion for early detection, timely diagnosis, and comprehensive breast cancer management.
Amy referred to mental health as a “big part” of their “global advocacy.” She explained, “For a long time, discussing mental health has been taboo in my culture and many others. People are reluctant to seek support due to the stigma attached to mental health, often fearing that they might be perceived as having serious issues. We are increasingly recognizing how many people could benefit from mental health support. Women who can’t afford healthcare for their children or themselves often experience mental health stressors, worrying that a single doctor’s visit could lead them into poverty.”
She also highlighted the need for mental health support for young people, who face pressures from family and society.
Addressing the ongoing controversy surrounding abortion, Amy provided insights from her oversight of activities at MSH and her experience advocating for maternal, reproductive, newborn, and adolescent health.
“When we discuss the leading causes of maternal mortality, unsafe abortion is undeniably one of the major contributors. Our OBGYN colleague mentioned that they estimate around 40% of maternal mortality in Cameroon is due to unsafe abortion. That’s the percentage of women who are in such bad shape, who have a ruptured uterus, who are bleeding, whatever it may be, that actually come to a health center or a hospital for help. That means the real number is much higher. There are a lot of challenges with really knowing what the maternal mortality situation is in a country. But what we do know and what the World Health Organization and others have systematically demonstrated is that if women are being forced to resort to unsafe abortions, then we’re going to see women continuing to die.”
Speaker Amy Speaking To The Press
Citing prevention as part of UHC, Amy emphasized that if women had access to various family planning or contraception methods, they could prevent unwanted pregnancies and make informed decisions about their reproductive health. This, she suggested, would reduce the need for abortions, which are often linked to women’s status and decision-making power in their communities.
It is no news that, legal barriers complicate access to safe abortion services, presenting significant hurdles for women, even when exceptions are permitted. In Cameroon and other countries, the process often involves lengthy court rulings and multiple medical certifications, delaying essential care.
Regarding local health challenges in Cameroon, she acknowledged the influence of cultural beliefs and practices on sexual and reproductive health. She emphasized the need to respect these beliefs while integrating them into public health initiatives, which is essential for addressing cultural challenges.
To illustrate this, she shared an example of indigenous women descended from Mayan Indians in Guatemala, who hold strong cultural beliefs about childbirth. Collaboration with traditional midwives has successfully bridged the gap between cultural practices and modern healthcare.
When asked how Cameroonian policymakers could enhance collaborations to improve health outcomes, particularly for mental and child health, Amy stressed the importance of participating in United Nations high-level meetings, where ambitious commitments to UHC and maternal and child health are established. “I advise them to continue making commitments centered on universal health coverage and to outline how these will be implemented in the country. That’s where we often see disconnects. There is also a space for multilateral discussions on health, such as the World Health Assembly. This is where health ministers from around the world, including Cameroon, convene to prioritize the global health agenda and implement the resulting agreements in their regions,” she said.
According to her, this participation enables Cameroon to advocate for its health priorities on a global stage.
Looking ahead to the future of health advocacy in low-resource settings like Cameroon, Amy expressed optimism and suggested that an effective data collection system be established to evaluate the success of health programs aimed at women and children. She believes accurate data on maternal and child mortality rates is crucial for identifying needs and advocating for resources.
By Sa’ah Siona Ikei,
Creative Storyteller.
(This article was first published in The Post Newspaper)
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