Project ADAM provides CPR training, AEDs to treat cardiac arrest in schools

CHICAGO - Six weeks ago, football fans watched with worry as Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field. Soon, America had tuned in – holding a collective breath as he was rushed away in an ambulance.

Hamlin survived, in large part, due to the immediate care he received and that is shedding light on why it’s so important to be prepared.     

"It’s an incredible story to begin with and it’s an important story," said Dr. Stuart Berger, Division Head of Cardiology, Lurie Children’s Hospital. 

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In a game where seconds could be the difference between winning and losing, on Jan. 2, they became a matter of life and death.

"It was amazing to see how people intervened, how they had an emergency action plan, how people did CPR," said Berger.

In a highly anticipated NFL matchup, what appeared to be an ordinary hit led to extraordinary circumstances.

"He survived, we all know that he survived, not only did he survive, he survived with great neurologic outcome," said Berger.

Dr. Berger leads the Division of Cardiology at Lurie Children’s Hospital. He said that while cardiac arrest in children isn’t common, it does happen.

"Being prepared is the key," said Berger.

Like Hamlin’s trainers and coaches were prepared when he suffered cardiac arrest on the field, schools can – and should – be too.

Dr. Berger has been leading that charge since 1999, when Adam Lemel, a Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin teen collapsed during a basketball game at an opposing school.

"Adam was 17 years old at the time, completely healthy young man, had a cardiac arrest on the basketball court at Grafton High School, which is a suburb of Milwaukee, and died," said Berger.

An automated external defibrillator (AED) could have saved his life, but there wasn’t one on-site. Although help arrived within minutes, it was too late.

"We had felt that we needed to do something, we need to be in a position to act and not wait for paramedics to get there," said Berger.

In the wake of that tragedy, Dr. Berger teamed up with Adam’s parents to create Project ADAM. It stands for Automated Defibrillators in Adam’s Memory. the organization’s goal is to guide schools in establishing a practiced plan to respond to sudden cardiac arrest, whether it’s during a sporting event, or in a classroom.

Nurse Katie Adduci with Glen Ellyn School District 41 isn’t taking any chances.

"This will be the first school district in Illinois that will have every school designated ‘Heart Safe’ through Project ADAM," said Adduci.

Working through a checklist, the district is on track to earn that designation this school year. It will cover 3,500 students across five schools, including at Hadley Junior High School. 

"We’ve put those AEDs in cases now where anywhere in the building we have a three minute response time to the AED," said Adduci.

But it’s more than just having the equipment at the ready, it’s knowing what to do, and having a chain of command. Adduci is finalizing the process by running drills with staff members who make up their cardiac response team.

"We call a cardiac alert over our walkie talkies and they would all respond and know they are responding and know their role in their response," said Adduci.

The district will join Project ADAM’s growing reach.  The organization has 38 affiliate sites in 29 states – Lurie Children’s Hospital being one of them. Nationwide, there are more than 4,100 ‘Heart Safe’ schools.  Plus, Project ADAM is responsible for more than 200 saves, and not just among children. 

"Remember there’s a lot of adults at school – whether it’s parents, whether it’s teachers – so over that 200+ number of saves, probably about 60 percent of them have been adults," said Berger.

Like Hamlin, those adults and kids are here today because seconds counted.

"It’s a beautiful example of how lives can be saved," said Berger. "It’s a matter of knowing what to do, recognizing what a sudden cardiac arrest is, and then intervening."

In Illinois, a law went into effect in 2014 requiring high school students to learn CPR and how to use an AED, but Berger says it’s an unfunded mandate.

To learn more about signs of cardiac arrest, click here.

For information on how to help your child’s school connect with Project ADAM, email projectadam@luriechildrens.org.