She wrote a nationally syndicated newspaper column called "Your Health - Here's How" and worked for Science Service.

[1] She worked as a chemical technician at Evanston Hospital from 1922 to 1925 before starting at the American Medical Association's Hygeia, predecessor of Today's Health [Wikidata], as an assistant editor, a job she held until 1927.

[1][2] In 1928, Stafford became an employee of Science Service as a medical staff writer and, in 1956, left for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and served as an assistant for research reports in the NIH's Office of Research Information, "which collected, prepared, and disseminated information related to the medical and biological sciences.

[2] Although Stafford never explicitly complained of sexist behaviors within the science professions (except for the pay differences), "Science Service records reveal that gender-based barriers were present and that both Stafford and director Watson Davis made some effort to combat them."

In response, Independent Woman asked Stafford to author an article focusing on Women in STEM fields; Stafford's resulting article "discussed the small band of pioneers who showed that women could make contributions to science."