Steph and Ryan Suderman are the parents of three children. Of course, a house full of the vitality of young lives always stays busy, but for the Sudermans, who live in Winkler, life is especially eventful.
Their oldest child, Hayden, is a beam of sunshine who turns nine this summer. She enjoys cuddles from her family and school like a typical child of her age, but one thing that stands out about her is how much she has had to fight through her childhood.
“She's got a condition ... called 1P36 Deletion Syndrome. It's characterized by daily seizures, developmental delay — she's nonverbal and non-ambulatory,” says Ryan.
“Over the last eight years of her life, she's been in and out of the hospital quite a bit.”
‘It almost came out of nowhere’
Although sudden hospitalizations often have a note of urgency, in some of Hayden’s situations especially, time has been of the essence.
In April of 2024, the family faced one such instance.
“She had to be lifted to Winnipeg in the STARS [air] ambulance. It was very critical, so we got her there very quickly,” says Ryan.
“It actually kind of spiralled. It almost felt like it came out of nowhere,” adds Steph. “Things just kind of escalated.”
For Steph and Ryan, the day unfolded in a flurry. First, Hayden’s blood pressure and oxygen levels dropped. The family knew a trip to Winnipeg for care would be necessary, so Ryan left for Winnipeg by vehicle.
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Meanwhile, medical staff at Boundary Trails Health Centre monitored Hayden’s condition and administered care with Steph present.
The situation appeared settled initially, but then the emergency was renewed and amplified.
“She was doing well, and she kind of felt stable, so they tried to bump down [her oxygen] a little bit. When that happened, everything just kind of fell apart,” says Steph. “They were trying to use the BiPAP, they were trying to use other things, and they just couldn't get her oxygen back.”
‘They arrived in and around all this chaos’
At this critical moment, two things happened: Steph contacted Ryan to return to the hospital, and STARS entered the scene.
“On my way back, we just didn't know if she was going to make it. I was getting there as quickly as I could," says Ryan. "I was running in just as they were putting the high heavy flow mask on her. At the time, she was pretty much unresponsive, and she was fading, and then STARS came.”
It was an intense moment.
“[They] arrived in and around all of this chaos,” says Steph.
Springing into action, one of the STARS team members intubated Hayden.
Although it was a solemn time, Ryan and Steph agree that the STARS team member’s presence was calming, efficient, and confident.
“He was amazing,” says Ryan.
A beacon in panicked moments
The Sudermans' sentiment about the team member is one that other STARS patients have echoed.
A local example is Megan Hildebrand, whose son suffered from a sudden ruptured artery and found himself in the emergency room, running out of time and resources as staff raced to provide medical care.
“They really drill into our heads non-technical skills — how to communicate properly with people, [and how to] bring everybody in and get them into the same mental model.”
-Allan, currently training to become a member of STARS.
For the Hildebrands, STARS was also called at a critical moment. The presence of their team brought an equal amount of comfort when it arrived.
“They came in [like] a well-oiled machine,” says Megan. “They packed up our little kiddo on this stretcher, said some encouraging words to us, and took off.”
It's part of the training
Understanding how to communicate and respond to chaos is an important part of STARS training. Over 40 years and 60,000 missions, the charity, which offers emergency medical care primarily in rural settings distant from city centres, has come to understand what it takes to respond to heartrending situations.
According to Allan, a Winnipeg native currently training to be a member of the STARS team, these skills are embedded in the organization’s lessons early on.
“At the beginning of academy, they really drill into our heads non-technical skills — how to communicate properly with people, [and how to] bring everybody in and get them into the same mental model,” he says. “[They teach us] how we can all come together to provide excellent care for the patient.”
Helpless but not hopeless
Just as the members of the STARS teams were seasoned professionals, it was also not Steph and Ryan’s first day handling an emergency medical situation.
“We've been through a lot of respiratory things ... with [Hayden’s] chronic pneumonia, so that wasn't uncommon or unfamiliar to us, but just the rapid decline [was startling],” says Steph.
For Ryan, the severity of the situation was also painted on the faces of the medical staff at Boundary Trails.
“Sometimes they're joking around because they see things all the time, which is good. They need to keep things light, but you could tell how serious it was [this time].”
The Sudermans say they kept up their hope and faith during Hayden's transfer into the STARS helicopter.
“As quickly as they work in that moment, it still feels like an eternity because you want [them] to get her to the best place possible,” says Ryan. “It just feels like an eternity as they're trying to figure out the best way to get her ready and stable enough to go.”
A moment of relief
After Hayden was whisked away in the STARS helicopter, Steph and Ryan followed in their vehicle. Along the way, they learned that Hayden had arrived at the children’s hospital and was settled in the PICU (Pediatric Intensive Care Unit).
“That's when I felt a little more at ease,” says Ryan.
“It’s funny how ... timed out [they are] because as we were leaving to drive there, they told us, ... 'If you drive now, by the time you get there, she will be ready for you to see her,'” adds Steph.
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The timing was almost perfect. When the Sudermans arrived, after a check-in with the doctor, Hayden was ready to see them, but it wasn’t an easy sight — she was connected to an array of medical equipment.
‘She has always been a fighter’
The Sudermans say that after STARS came to get Hayden to take her to the hospital, she remained on a ventilator for five days and was in the hospital for a few weeks.
“Luckily, she was able to pull through,” says Ryan. “Her strength brought her through.”
Steph says that Hayden improved as quickly as she declined.
“She has always been a fighter.”
A memorable reunion
Once things calmed down, Ryan had the opportunity to connect with the STARS team member who intubated his daughter. He says he even recognized him from high school in Winkler.
“I quickly ran out there and talked to him for, I don't know, 2-3 minutes just to thank him for basically saving Hayden's life,” he says. “We're blown away by the care they provided for her, and he was very gracious in talking to me a bit. He didn't want to take up any of my time, but I just wanted to thank him for what he did for her.”
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