Time Critical Diagnosis

Minutes Matter. Call 911.

Learn about Missouri’s Time Critical Diagnosis System

Every minute counts during a serious injury, heart attack or stroke. Missouri’s Time Critical Diagnosis (TCD) System designates hospitals as stroke and heart attack centers with specially trained staff 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The statewide TCD system brings together 911 response, ambulance services and hospitals in a coordinated approach to help ensure patients’ survival and recovery.

Liberty Hospital is a Level II Stroke, Trauma and Heart Attack Center where we receive and treat high volumes of trauma, stroke and heart attack patients.

STROKE

A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is blocked, or there is a sudden bleeding in the brain. When blood flow is disrupted, oxygen cannot reach the brain, causing millions of brain cells to die every minute. Stroke is the 5th leading cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S.

Ischemic stroke occurs when a blood vessel is blocked by a clot, while hemorrhagic stroke occurs when a blood vessel ruptures.

Strokes occur in people of all ages. Risk factors for stroke include:
• Atrial fibrillation
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Smoking
• Obesity
• Diabetes

Up to 80% of strokes are preventable.
Strokes may be prevented by making healthy lifestyle choices:
• Eat healthy by including fresh vegetables and foods high in fiber, and avoiding foods high in salt, saturated fats, trans fat and cholesterol
• Maintain a healthy weight by exercising and incorporating daily, moderate-intensity physical activity
• Don’t smoke
• Limit alcohol
• Control medical conditions including high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes
• Treat heart disease

Seeking immediate medical help is key to the outcome of a stroke. BE-FAST to spot the symptoms of a stroke and call 911.

Liberty Hospital provides 24/7 stroke care to patients aged 18 and older. Our multidisciplinary stroke team acts quickly to evaluate patients and provide treatment according to leading standards of care:
• Thrombolytic treatment and management of ischemic stroke
• Neurosurgical interventions and management of hemorrhagic stroke
• Management of patients with TIA

Patients requiring mechanical thrombectomy or aneurysm repair are stabilized at Liberty Hospital and transferred to our regional comprehensive stroke center partners for advanced interventions.

The Liberty Hospital Stroke Support Group meets every fourth Tuesday from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. at the Education Center, room 5, located at the lower level of the hospital.