‘Remarkable speed’: Hospital foundation buys new lab equipment with radiothon funds
The Fort St. John Hospital Foundation has purchased and integrated a MALDI Biotyper machine into the Fort St. John Hospital laboratory.
FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — A game-changing new piece of machinery hit the shelves of the Fort St. John laboratory last month.
The MALDI Biotyper, also known as a matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry, entered routine use in late September after being purchased by the Fort St. John Hospital Foundation.
The machine identifies bacteria and yeast “with remarkable speed” and can process “hundreds of samples per hour,” according to the Fort St. John Hospital Foundation.
The funds to purchase the machine were raised at Moose Media’s 2024 Light a Moose radiothon from November 20th to 22nd.
Moose Media is the parent company of Energeticcity.ca and 100.1 Moose FM.
With individual residents stopping by the Chances Casino parking lot to donate, as well as large donations from entities such as NorthRiver Midstream, Mustang Rentals, Petronas, Enbridge and Chances Casino, the event was successful in raising $150,000 for the machine.
According to the foundation, the machine will assist with dramatically reducing the wait time for pathogen identifications, allowing doctors across the region to provide the correct antibiotics and treatment.
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The next Light a Moose radiothon fundraiser with the Fort St. John Hospital Foundation will be taking place from November 19th to 21st, 2025.
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