Our Story
How our partnership with a pioneering force in maternal health began
1999
Gender equity and social justice advocate Alice Emasu Seruyange co-founds TERREWODE (The Association for Rehabilitation and Re-orientation of Women for Development), a grassroots organization that breaks the silence that surrounds obstetric fistula in Uganda.
2018
Construction crews break ground on new hospital, with hundreds of community members cheering on — fistula survivors, their families, community leaders, members of Parliament, TERREWODE, Terrewode Women’s Fund and other supporting organizations.
2021
Terrewode Women's Fund grows exponentially. Many new supporters from communities across the US significantly increasing financial support for Terrewode Women's Community Hospital and the hiring of a full-time executive director.
2014
Together with Sharon Howe, Bonnie Ruder co-founds Terrewode Women's Fund, partnering with TERREWODE to bring high-quality, holistic fistula treatment to Uganda.
2019
Terrewode Women’s Community Hospital opens, the first hospital of its kind in Uganda, with a 30-bed surgical unit and Reintegration Center enough to care for 600 women per year.
2024
Terrewode Women's Community Hospital treats more than 500 patients — more than any year since the hospital opened — and begins screening for cervical cancer, a leading cause of death for women in Uganda.
2000s
TERREWODE develops a groundbreaking holistic model for reintegration — the first of its kind to provide the comprehensive care women need to restart their lives after fistula, including counseling, education, and economic empowerment.
2022
Faced with periodic COVID spikes, an Ebola outbreak, soaring inflation, drought, and food insecurity in Uganda, the Terrewode team continued to prioritize women and girls suffering from obstetric fistula.
2011
Bonnie Ruder travels to Uganda to conduct research with TERREWODE. Frustrated by the inconsistent availability and quality of treatment in the chronically under-resourced government hospitals, Alice Emasu has a vision for a better model of care. She and Bonnie begin to develop a plan for building TERREWODE’s own hospital.
2015
Capital campaign for the hospital begins. Terrewode Women’s Fund plays a leading role in purchasing the 6-acre plot of land in Soroti, Uganda, where the hospital exists today and in helping raise the $1.6 million for the hospital’s construction.
2020
TERREWODE launches new services to address pandemic-related needs: 24/7 ambulance service to transport women in labor and phone counseling for fistula survivors experiencing domestic violence amid COVID-19 lockdowns.
2023
New Urodynamic and Incontinence Clinic opens at Terrewode Women's Community Hospital for women who continue to experience residual incontinent despite successful fistula surgery.
2025
The Terrewode team makes progress planning and designing Terrewode Maternity, a state-of-the-art maternity ward with the capacity to deliver 1,500 babies year.
TODAY
Terrewode Women’s Community Hospital is fully functioning, providing world-class surgical treatment for obstetric fistula and childbirth injuries. It is the new gold-standard in holistic, patient-centered fistula treatment. Plans are underway to develop a Maternity Center of Excellence to prevent fistula.
TERREWODE and Terrewode Women's Community Hospital have supported holistic treatment and reintegration services for thousands of women and girls suffering from fistula and other childbirth injuries.
