Partnering with FullSoul & Rotary International

In Canada, when women labor in hospitals they have trust in the healthcare system to use sterile supplies for safe delivery. In Uganda, chronic underfunding has left many health facilities without adequate medical supplies. Very often, pregnant women arrive at hospitals with their own medical tools and must pay for their own delivery supplies. If they cannot do either, they are turned away. In addition, shortages of consumables means that disposable items often get reused between patients, potentially increasing the spread of dangerous infections. To reduce post-delivery complications and deaths, FullSoul and Sterile Processing Education Charitable Trust (SPECT) are partnering to provide medical kits with reusable surgical instruments and training on proper sterile processing techniques to midwives and nurses.

FullSoul, a Canadian non-profit organization co-founded by Christina Hassan, implemented the Maternal Medical Kit (MMK) program in hospitals in Uganda. The program provides hospitals with toolkits containing artery forceps, scissors, kidney dishes, needle holders, and dissecting forceps that can be sterilized and reused.

With funding provided by a Global Rotary Club Grant, SPECT will provide training and mentoring in sterile processing practices to help ensure instruments provided through the MMK program are safe for reuse between patient procedures. In partnership with the Rotary Club of Mukono, SPECT and FullSoul will provide sterilization equipment, including instrument baskets, dressing drums and autoclaves where needed. The added tools, as well as SPECT training, will equip nurses and midwives with an essential understanding of the importance of sterile processing practices. SPECT’s research has found knowledge of effective sterilization practices motivates healthcare workers and decreases the risks present in the birth environments for mothers and babies.

“FullSoul’s number one priority has always been safe births for mothers, babies and healthcare providers. With the help of SPECT, we will make sure that our tools reach the highest attainable level of sterility so no one is left behind.” says Christina Hassan. “Thanks to Avenue’s Top 40 under 40, we came to know about SPECT and all the great work this Calgary-based organization does around the world. It is always great to meet people doing wonderful things in our global community, but even better when we find those connections at home in Calgary.”

Christina Fast, founder of SPECT, established the organization after visiting hospitals in Sierra Leone and learning that sterilization of surgical tools was absent in the hospitals she visited. Fast is an experienced sterile processing educator who has been teaching healthcare workers since 2011, both in Calgary and internationally. SPECT has worked in 7 countries in Africa, including Guinea, Republic of the Congo, Madagascar, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Benin. SPECT’s involvement and connection to numerous countries in Africa makes them suited to work together with FullSoul to improve healthcare in Uganda.

For more information on FullSoul please email info@fullsoul.ca. For more information about SPECT please email hello@spectrust.org.