Roles Reversed: When Stroke Care Advocate Experienced Stroke, Missouri Baptist Medical Center Saved One of Its Own

LeAnn Areford doesn’t just love her job.

She’s convinced it saved her life.

As a Missouri Baptist Medical Center outpatient therapy patient access specialist, LeAnn helps MoBap patients to receive insurance approvals for the care they need. She often assists stroke survivors hoping to benefit from outpatient therapy. Her work has taken on a new meaning since she became a stroke survivor.

When she suffered an ischemic stroke caused by a blood clot in her brain during her lunch break at MoBap on Oct. 2, 2025, LeAnn asked coworkers for help.

With speed and precision, her MoBap colleagues across departments jumped into action to save their colleague.

What if?

LeAnn, 62, beams positivity.

She’s a dedicated Girl Scouts supporter, a gifted artist, and an adventurous hiker who once completed a 16-mile trek. She’s quick to make a thoughtful gift for a colleague who is celebrating a special milestone. She’s a high-level competitor in her office’s holiday desk decorating challenge.

Her story, she insists, is a happy one, but she admits she’s wondered how things might have changed if she wasn’t at work when her stroke occurred.

“I’m so fortunate it happened like it did, because if I had been home, I probably would not have called 911,” she says. “My story would be different. I may not be here to tell it. The most important thing people need to understand is that a stroke doesn’t always present with a sagging face or something so obvious.”

LeAnn knew the signs of stroke. Working in a hospital, she receives annual education on recognizing stroke symptoms for patients. And it’s impossible at MoBap to miss mentions of BE FAST, the acronym created to help people spot the signs of stroke and respond rapidly. 

• Balance: Has the person lost their balance?
• Eyes: Has the person lost vision in one or both eyes?
• Face: Does the person’s face look uneven?
• Arms: Can the person raise both arms for 10 seconds?
• Speech: Is the person’s speech slurred?
• Time: Time is brain. Call 911 if you suspect a stroke.

Still, LeAnn did not immediately connect the dots when her stroke started. She’s diabetic, which elevates a person’s risk for stroke, but she treats her diabetes with medication and rarely has an issue. When her left leg suddenly stopped working, she figured the loss of feeling was caused by a back problem, perhaps a pinched nerve.

“But where are the pins and needles?” LeAnn remembers wondering.

Fortunately, LeAnn was in the right place. After she shared her symptoms with coworkers, they accompanied her to MoBap’s Emergency Department, where her care team quickly made the call. LeAnn needed to be treated for stroke, and there was no time to waste.

Critical care, quickly

For stroke patients, rapid care is crucial, because the longer the brain goes without oxygen, the more permanent damage the brain and the body sustain.

That’s why MoBap’s Primary Stroke Center is geared to make every second count. The hospital, which U.S. News & World Report ranks as high performing for stroke care, carries a Certificate of Distinction as a Primary Stroke center by The Joint Commission. LeAnn’s experience illustrated MoBap’s excellence and efficiency.

Tyler Tanzyus, FNP, a BJC Medical Group board-certified family medicine nurse practitioner who specializes in treating neurological conditions, cared for LeAnn in the Emergency Department. Thanks to BJC's telestroke network, she met in real time through a video call with  Derek Holder, MD, a WashU Medicine neurologist and stroke specialist at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. The telestroke network connects all 14 BJC hospitals to WashU Medicine stroke specialists 24/7 and creates a faster treatment process for patients who need tenecteplase (TNK), an injectable drug that breaks down the clots that cause strokes and restores blood flow to the brain.

Two hours after she received TNK, LeAnn could move her left foot again. Five hours later, most of her symptoms had disappeared. After passing a battery of tests with doctors and therapists, she was cleared to return home after just one night’s stay at MoBap, with plans in place for follow-up neurological and cardiovascular care with BJC Medical Group clinicians.

All of LeAnn’s care takes place at MoBap, where she’s most comfortable.

“I couldn’t have asked for anything better,” she says.

A personalized therapy plan

Lasting complications from strokes are called deficits. For LeAnn, just one complication lingered.

“I have a residual left foot drop, so my left foot flops a little bit louder when I walk,” she says. “It’s worse at the end of the day.”

For someone who loves to spend her free time in nature, sticking to flat trails instead of winding, climbing paths was not something LeAnn wanted to accept.

“I need to be outdoors,” she says. “It’s a resetting of my soul. Being on a river in a kayak or hiking through the woods, it’s important for me to be able to get back to that.”

LeAnn knew from her experience working with stroke survivors that combatting deficits through therapy quickly, especially within the first six months after a stroke, can make a big difference in overcoming physical setbacks.

“She understood she needed to get to therapy right away,” says Amelia Andrade, LeAnn’s primary physical therapist at MoBap. “Working in the therapy department, she knew she could be her own advocate. For stroke survivors, knowing the therapy options and feeling comfortable enough to ask for them is important.”

LeAnn and Amelia met as coworkers before LeAnn’s stroke. Now they’re bonded as teammates in LeAnn’s recovery. Because LeAnn shared her interests and goals with Amelia, as all patients are encouraged to do to help personalize their therapy, LeAnn’s program is built around getting her back to doing what she loves. Her twice-a-week therapy sessions focus on building strength and stamina in her left leg to increase foot clearance and improve balance. These movements prepare her for the roots and rocks encountered while hiking.

“She hates them a lot, but I make her do hurdles,” Amelia says, with a laugh. “The repetition and the intensity are driving factors for neuroplasticity—the brain’s ability to rewire itself after a stroke—so having her repeatedly lift her foot and focus on hitting the ground with her heel first helps rebuilds that motor control connection.”

MoBap’s therapy team regularly introduces patients to leading-edge technology. Part of LeAnn’s therapy has included the use of a new wearable device that uses functional electrical stimulation to target stimulation to the specific area a patient needs to strengthen, such as LeAnn’s left leg and foot.

“It can be nice as a tool to help jump-start those muscles,” Amelia says.

New adventures planned

From fast action at the Emergency Department’s front lines, the continued watchful eye of her neurology and cardiology care teams, and the sustained support of her outpatient therapy family, all aspects of MoBap’s stroke care came together to help LeAnn get to where she is today.

She plans to complete a personal-best 20-mile hike before the one-year anniversary of her stroke arrives. She’s joined MoBap’s free monthly stroke support group to motivate her continued progress. She’s also back to work in a job she’s always loved, carrying with her an even greater passion for her clients, her colleagues, and her hospital.

“I don’t think there was one thing I would change about my care,” LeAnn says. “It was the best and fastest care possible. It’s opened my eyes in more ways than one.”

If you or a loved one suffered a stroke, BJC HealthCare invites you to join one of our free  stroke support groups.

Take our free stroke risk assessment