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Community Corner

Free Youth Heart Screening

Is your child heart healthy?  On July 18, 2011, Ralph and Deb Thibodeau started their morning having no idea that any of their five children had a heart condition.  By the end of the day, their 12 year old son Joshua had died of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) while participating in a soccer camp.  By the end of the following week, all of their children had undergone cardiac testing and their youngest son, Adam, was subsequently diagnosed with Long QT Syndrome.  In an effort to prevent any other family from going through the heart break they have endured, the Thibodeaus created The Josh Thibodeau Helping Hearts Foundation (JTHHF).  The Thibodeau’s are long time friends of John and Marcy Hauber of Salem. 

 

On Saturday, April 12, 2014, JTHHF will hold its second free heart screening event, for kids ages 12-19, in Salem from 9am-3:30pm at the Nathaniel Bowditch School.  Knowing that statistics show that one high school aged athlete suffers a SCA every three days, JTHHF is doing everything it can to test and educate young people and their parents.  At their first event last June at Wachusett High, 116 students were screened with 20 students being advised to seek further treatment and 3 of those students having major heart issues diagnosed as a result of the screening.

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A heart screening appointment consists of a review of the student’s health history; height, weight and blood pressure check; heart sounds check; electrocardiogram; echocardiogram, if needed; and physician consultation.  Students will also have the opportunity to learn hands on CPR and how to use an Automated External Defibrillator (AED).  The entire appointment lasts approximately 30-45 minutes per student.  Dr. David A. Kane, MD, Assistant Professor of Pediatric Cardiology at UMass Medical School and the Medical Director of JTHHF will be the consulting cardiologist at the event.

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