Rod Seeley was an anatomy and physiology professor at Idaho State University for 34 years. He even wrote and published a textbook that is still in production. Rod has always prioritized fitness, both physical and mental. He has remained active and pursued interests such as teaching himself Spanish. His lifestyle and habits were conducive to good health, not the medical emergency he later experienced.
Rod had a procedure scheduled and discontinued the use of his blood thinner the night before in preparation. The next morning, his wife awoke to find him having difficulty breathing and began CPR. She called 911 and Rod was transported to Portneuf Medical Center (PMC). He was quickly evaluated by the emergency department team and was found to be having a life-threatening stroke.
PMC’s team of highly-skilled medical professionals took immediate action to help Rod. He was taken to the interventional radiology room where the team performed a mechanical thrombectomy, which is a minimally invasive procedure to remove a blood clot from the brain.
Mechanical thrombectomy plays a crucial role in improving outcomes for stroke patients by reducing disability, lowering mortality rates and enhancing quality of life. PMC is a Primary Stroke Center+ thrombectomy certification, which shows the hospital’s commitment to outstanding stroke care.
Rod began working with physical, occupational and speech therapies to regain mobility. He began treatment on the inpatient rehabilitation unit at PMC. Despite a few setbacks, Rod kept fighting. He stated that his favorite part about being on the rehab unit was his therapy and he appreciated the encouragement he received from nurses and doctors. His wife said that he made excellent progress with his therapy. They both appreciated how the therapists provided different techniques and strategies to stimulate Rod’s recovery and loved the “caring attitude of all the nurses, doctors and therapists.”
Rod was able to recover from his stroke and return home to his family where he is doing well.