Tyler Lister had experienced pneumonia several times before in his life and recovered well. This time, he ended up in the ICU for 22 days.

A few days after his pneumonia diagnosis, Lisa, Tyler’s mom, was working from home when she noticed he was having trouble breathing. Soon after, they went to the Moose Jaw hospital, expecting a short visit.

In a turn of events, Tyler went downhill quickly.

Born with Down syndrome, Tyler has always been positive, but as his health started to slip away, so did his spirit. He was put on oxygen immediately.

About seven hours after being admitted, the doctor told Lisa to call her children, Paige and Dallas, and tell them to come home — Tyler was not doing well.

Dallas, an hour away and driving in the middle of the night, video called Tyler on the way to the hospital. By the time he arrived, Tyler had been intubated to help him breathe.

Lisa and her family sat in the hallway for hours, painfully awaiting news — when they all heard the words, “STARS will be here in 20.”

Recognizing the severity of Tyler’s condition, the hospital made the urgent decision to call STARS for a transfer to a larger urban center with the specialized care he needed.

They shot up and looked at each other, stunned that STARS was coming to help. Amid the shock, Lisa doesn’t remember everything, but she vividly recalls Tyler’s STARS crew arriving at the hospital.

“Tammy is such an angel.” Lisa recounted, reflecting on her encounter with STARS flight nurse, Tammy Hagerty, upon arrival. “Before they left with Tyler, Tammy took me aside, gave me a hug and promised me she would look after him. She didn’t have to do that — it’s not part of her job. But it’s something that will forever be in my heart.”

The flight from Moose Jaw to Regina saved Tyler’s life. Once he arrived, he was admitted to the ICU, where he faced greater challenges. Tyler went into respiratory failure and septic shock, and doctors drained four litres of fluid from one lung alone. Five days later, Tyler had emergency ileostomy surgery to remove part of his intestine that had been damaged due to reduced blood flow.

Tyler spent a full month in the hospital before returning to Moose Jaw. But his fight wasn’t over. Not long after, he suffered massive pulmonary embolisms. Blood clots covered six to eight of his 12 lung segments, keeping him hospitalized in Moose Jaw for another 18 days.

In instances where the closest hospital does not have the resources to treat patients in critical condition, STARS is often called for life-saving interfacility transfers — a transfer from one hospital to another — to transport patients to a hospital equipped with the specialized care and equipment they need.

Lisa emphasized the importance of interfacility transfers, saying, “When a STARS notification says ‘interfacility transfer,’ it is a dire need. If you're not part of STARS, it might just sound like moving someone from one place to another, but in reality, every transfer is a life-saving mission.”

Today, Tyler is nearly back to normal and even underwent an early reverse ileostomy, a procedure that restored his normal digestive function. He’s back at his day program, his bubbly personality has returned and, he is absolutely smitten as a new uncle to his beautiful baby niece.