Mission Ready – Details, episodes & analysis

A teenage boy becomes trapped under an industrial riding lawnmower. With a cutting blade embedded in his chest and a severely injured arm, he fights for life alone until he’s eventually discovered, setting off a multi-agency emergency response. STARS is dispatched, and the skilled crew that responds works shoulder-to-shoulder with allies to give the boy a chance at life. Season 2 of the STARS podcast Mission Ready, presented by ARC Resources, starts April 16. Find bonus material at https://stars.ca/missionready.

If you loved the dramatic music in our Mission Ready podcast you will love the story behind the music. Meet 15-year-old Kaiya Gamble who drew on her talents and deep connection to STARS to create the perfect theme music for Season 1: Mauling on a Mountaintop. “STARS gave so much to my family I want to give something back,” says Kaiya. Watch the video version of this episode at https://youtu.be/9bcZklqw3NA.

When our first helicopter and medical crew took flight in 1985, we didn’t just offer hope to the hopeless. We radically changed the way critical care was delivered. Join us as we chat with Dr. Greg Powell, one of STARS’ founders, as he takes us through the birth and growth of Western Canada’s leading prehospital care service. Find out where our very first patient is now and how STARS made all the difference.

Marcia’s recovery was a journey of ups, downs, and seemingly never-ending run-ins with cougars. It was as though she was living in a nightmare long after the attack. Listen as she shares the unconventional ways she chose to cope, including what happened when she returned to the scene of the attack and the special name she gave to her first child.  

Who provides support to the frontline staff and to the people who witnessed this attack and other horrific tragedies? With PTSD top of mind for front-line workers and mental health and wellness such an important factor in our industry and beyond, how do we make sure our crews stay healthy physically and mentally? We talk to the helpers and find out how they cope.

Forty inches of stitches to Marcia’s head. Another 140 staples. Six hours and 30 minutes to sew up the wounds. A jar of cougar fur. An off-duty STARS nurse was at the landing pad with Marcia’s boyfriend when the helicopter landed and Marcia was rushed inside. Marla Tabler was there for it all and walks us through the care she received in hospital.  

Inside the STARS helicopter enroute to the mountain top, the air medical crew prepares for what they are about to experience on this complex mission: treating a coworker’s loved one who has been mauled by a cougar and sustained a massive head wound. At the chaotic scene, Marcia’s coworkers apply first aid and scramble to prepare a landing zone for the helicopter which is about 20 minutes out. 

Marcia is in urgent need of frontline health-care workers with advanced knowledge, expertise, and skills, but the only way to get them there on this day is by helicopter. We chat with one of the STARS pilots on this mission and find out what the pilots and emergency communications specialists discussed as they considered accepting the mission. 

Marcia Birkigt is a government biologist who has been mauled by a massive cougar while she and her colleagues work in the remote wilderness. Electrical storms in the area are hampering calls to 911 and the roads to rescue her on a mountain top are deemed impassible. How will Marcia get the urgent care she needs to survive?

When a large cougar left a woman fighting for her life in the remote wilderness, many people jumped into action to make sure she reached the care she needed.