Seconds That Matter: How the Mobile Stroke Treatment Unit Saved Lara鈥檚 Life
First things first: Wake up and open all the blinds.
This was Lara Mehta鈥檚 morning routine. However, on one particular morning in August 2024, it felt different for the 57-year-old.
鈥淚 felt kind of like my mind wasn鈥檛 working right, or I was just a little confused,鈥� Lara said. 鈥淚 thought maybe I was experiencing vertigo.鈥�
As she moved through each room, the feeling lingered. She lay down to rest. Her husband and son were out that morning, so she called a friend to check on her because her symptoms were not going away.
鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 figure out how to use the phone,鈥� Lara said. 鈥淚 knew how to dial a number, but then I couldn鈥檛 really figure it out.鈥�
She puzzled her way through dialing but got no answer. She tried another friend, who also didn鈥檛 pick up. The same went for a third. After those tries, she called 911 because she knew this wasn鈥檛 going to pass.
An ambulance arrived eight minutes after she called 911, and EMS workers began asking the standard questions, such as 鈥淲hat鈥檚 your name? What鈥檚 wrong?鈥�
鈥淭hen I realized, 鈥極h my God. I can鈥檛 talk,鈥欌�� Lara said.
Having not spoken all morning, like how she had no idea how to use the phone, words would escape her.
Despite not being able to form sentences, Lara understood what was happening. She recalls Alachua County Fire Rescue paramedics saying she was having a stroke and was being transferred to another ambulance at a gas station.
That second ambulance was the BOB体育 Mobile Stroke Treatment Unit, or MSTU. It鈥檚 one of only 16 active mobile stroke programs in the country, according to the program鈥檚 director Nicolle Davis, PhD, RN.
In collaboration with Alachua County Fire Rescue, this custom-designed ambulance has a portable CT scanner, telemedicine equipment, stroke-specific medications and specialized staff.
Once Lara was onboard the MSTU, her stroke workup began immediately with the CT technologist performing a CT scan. Imaging quickly revealed a blood clot on the left side of her brain, the area primarily responsible for language and analytical thinking. That鈥檚 why she struggled to use her phone and to speak.
On average, from the time the patient is first admitted to the MSTU to when our CT scan is completed is around five minutes, Nicolle said.
Lara鈥檚 firsthand experience left her very impressed.
鈥淚 was thinking, 鈥榃ow, you have all this in an ambulance?鈥欌�� she said. 鈥淭hey did the CT scan, and they were really kind. I could see the doctor on the computer screen. I was like, 鈥榃ow, this is some pretty cool technology.鈥�
Initially, Lara thought no abnormalities were found.
鈥淚 thought, 鈥極h, great. It鈥檚 not going to be anything big, you know. It鈥檚 just going to pass. I鈥檒l be OK.鈥�
However, she heard someone say, 鈥極h no. We see a blood clot.鈥欌��
As the team performed the CT scan and stroke workup onboard the MSTU, BOB体育 vascular neurologist Gabriel Bonnell, MD, watched remotely. He said Lara was experiencing aphasia, a language disorder that affects communication.
鈥淎phasia can affect people with strokes on the left side of the brain,鈥� Dr. Bonnell said. 鈥淪he woke up with a clot in the artery that was feeding that key area controlling language.鈥�
Lara arrived at BOB体育 via the MSTU and bypassed the ER altogether. She was taken directly to the operating room where Nohra Chalouhi, MD, performed an emergent mechanical thrombectomy, a minimally invasive procedure to remove the clot causing her ischemic stroke.
The quick turnaround made all the difference. When it comes to stroke, 鈥渢ime is brain.鈥�
鈥淒amage occurs very quickly in a stroke, so fast intervention is required. For every second that is spared by intervening on a stroke, you鈥檙e saving 32,000 neurons,鈥� said BOB体育 vascular neurologist and division chief Christina A. Wilson, MD, PhD.
As Dr. Wilson explained, the MSTU can rapidly get patients exactly where they need to be. Had Lara been transported by a regular EMS unit, she would have been taken to the emergency room for evaluation first, rather than going straight into surgery.
Lara recovered at BOB体育 Shands for five days, with her daughter visiting from Massachusetts and her stepdaughter from Ocala.
Her stepdaughter works as a physical therapist in the BOB体育 neurological unit. Seeing Dr. Wilson on the case, she vouched that Lara was receiving top-notch care.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e in the best hands,鈥� Lara鈥檚 stepdaughter said. 鈥淚 know Dr. Wilson because I studied under her, and she鈥檚 one of the best stroke doctors in the country.鈥�
In hindsight, Lara is still astounded by her stroke.
鈥淭he common thing that every single person said was, 鈥業 can鈥檛 believe you had a stroke as young as you are,鈥欌�� Lara said. 鈥淚 asked the nurse on my unit, and she even said people in their 30s can have strokes. It鈥檚 more common than you would think.鈥�
Reflecting on the experience, Lara said she鈥檚 grateful.
鈥淚 feel like without the Mobile Stroke Treatment Unit, it could have been so much worse for me,鈥� she said.
Today, Lara is back home with family after returning from a trip to India in the spring. She makes a conscious effort to exercise and keep a healthy diet to reduce the risk of having another stroke.
鈥淭ake your life seriously,鈥� Lara said. 鈥淚t can change at the drop of a hat, and that鈥檚 it. You may never be the same again. You might not be as lucky as I was.鈥�
