page_title: Shock Trauma Air Rescue Service
section_title: Alberta
hierarchical_section_title: Shock Trauma Air Rescue Service / Alberta
caption_attribution_description: English: Photo of STARS Air Ambulance helicopter landing in Pincher Creek, Alberta on Saturday, Jan. 25 2014 Other information Nothing.
context_page_description: The Shock Trauma Air Rescue Service is a Canadian non-profit helicopter air ambulance organization funded by individual donors, service groups, corporate donors and government contributions. STARS provides rapid and specialized emergency care and transportation for critically ill and injured patients. STARS operates from bases in Calgary, Edmonton, Grande Prairie, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg and formerly Halifax.
context_section_description: The STARS Calgary base opened in 1985. The original name was the Lions Air Ambulance Service. The Lions Club provided the first helicopter, a white BK117 with the Lions Club banner on the side. The Lions Air Ambulance Service’s first mission was in December 1985, the transport of a critically ill infant to a hospital in Calgary.  In 1988 STARS’ received formal recognition as an essential service when the organization was integrated into emergency planning for the Calgary Olympic Winter Games.
  In 1991 the STARS Edmonton base was established and conducted its first mission in October of that year. The Edmonton base initially operated out of the Edmonton City Centre Airport and has since moved to the Edmonton International Airport. 
  In 1996, the STARS Emergency Link Centre (ELC) was established with funding received from the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers. In Alberta and Saskatchewan the STARS ELC acts as an advanced 24-hour communication centre linking emergency services, physicians, hospital personnel and EMS into one call. In Manitoba, these services are handled by the province’s Medical Transportation Coordination Centre. 
  The STARS ELC also provides a site registration program whereby an average of 4,000 remote work sites are connected directly to the centre on any given day for immediate response when emergencies occur.
  In 1998, the STARS Seconds Count Capital Campaign was launched to buy two STARS helicopters and establish the STARS Legacy Fund. STARS also received full accreditation as an international critical-care provider from the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems (CAMTS). The Human Patient Simulator program was established in Alberta through the support of founding donors.
  In 2001, the International Association of Air Medical Services awarded STARS the prestigious Program of the Year award. STARS was the first international and first Canadian program to receive this honour. In this same year, STARS also purchased a fourth BK117 helicopter.
  STARS opened a third base in Alberta in 2006 in Grande Prairie. In its first year, the Grande Prairie base flew more than 116 missions.
caption: One of STARS' new AW139s lands in Pincher Creek, Alberta
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