Christina Fast -A STERILE Approach to Health Care in West Africa

Please join host Frankie Picasso this Thursday, August 13th at 1:00 pm EDT on The Good Radio Network when she is joined by her guest, Christina Fast,  an incredible young Canadian woman who founded SPECTrust, ‘Sterile Processing Education Charitable Trust’). The trust  which that was established to support education related to effective sterile processing and infection control practices in hospitals and clinics in developing countries such as Guinea, Sierra Leone, Congo and Madagascar.

Christina first went to West Africa in 2011 when she volunteered to be an OR Sterilizer for Mercy Ships Canada. While on board, she was able to teach to some crew as a well as local staff  the International course on Sterilization that she was currently delivering in Calgary.

Curious about the local hospital, Christina asked these nurses if they would take her to visit the local hospital to view their sterilization setup. She almost wished she hadn’t. ‘

Not only were their sterilization techniques unsanitary, “They had a few drum sterilizers that had been broken for an unknown length of time.” says Christina, but the infection rates post surgery were like 90% compared to the hospital where Christina worked was 0.03% surgically related infection rate.

Touring that hospital, Christina realized at that moment that she hadn't been called to Africa to serve onboard, but to be a voice for this unseen and so crucially important area of the hospitals.”

Since that visit, Christina has developed more training, and continues to volunteer sterilization techniques in collaboration with the African Mercy.

Through a government grant, Christina has been able to purchase Pressure Cookers that she brings to hospitals and medical centres throughout West Africa in an attempt to increase the sterility of their instruments.

Stay tuned to hear her story.