Star of Life

The Star of Life is the symbol representing Emergency Medical Technicians. Both the American Medical Association and the Advisory Council within the Department of Health and Human Services encourage this symbols use. The symbol's six-barred cross represents the six-system function of the EMS: Detection; Reporting; Response; On Scene Care; Care in Transit; Transfer to Definitive Care. The staff in the center of the symbol represents medicine and healing. According to Greek mythology, the staff belonged to Asclepius, the son of Apollo (god of light, truth, and prophecy). Asclepius supposedly learned the art of healing from the Centaur Cheiron. But he elicited the wrath of the god Zeus when he started resurrecting people from the dead. Fearful that Asclepius' knowledge might render mankind immortal; Zeus slew Asclepius with a thunderbolt. Eventually Zeus restored Asclepius to life, making him a god. Asclepius is usually shown in a standing position, dressed in a long cloak and holding a staff with a curative serpent coiled around it, an image that Zeus later set among the starts. Worshippers used to sleep in Asclepius' temples in the belief that Asclepius cured the sick during their dreams.