Ron Diller

Ron Diller arrived at a rural hospital looking to treat his sudden and severe back pain.

But during the medical examination, Diller collapsed and went into cardiac arrest, needing nearly five minutes of CPR to be revived.

“I don’t recall any of that,” Diller said. “The nurse turned her back to me for a couple of seconds, and when she turned back I was on the floor and I was dead.”

The physicians suspected that Diller had an abdominal aortic aneurysm, needing urgent care at a larger hospital.

That’s when STARS was called to assist.

Minutes after boarding Diller onto the helicopter, STARS nurse Rene Chapman confirmed the aneurysm using a portable ultrasound machine. The STARS Emergency Link Centre then informed the vascular surgeon on call that Diller would need urgent surgery upon arrival to repair his aorta.

“Without the information they were able to provide to the hospital, I would have had a four or five hour wait time,” Diller said. “I am I only alive today because of STARS rescue, and their ability to provide information from the helicopter to the operating crew.”

Bedside ultrasounds are a recent addition to STARS helicopters, thanks largely to the generosity of our allies. For Chapman, bringing ultrasound to these sick patients offers STARS transport teams another valuable tool to help guide care.

“Critically ill and injured patients display a variety of symptoms, and it can sometimes be challenging to differentiate the cause of these illnesses… when there are limited diagnostics,” said Chapman.

Without passionate and committed allies like you, STARS wouldn’t have access to the talented individuals and essential medical tools which save lives by saving time.