A message from Julie West-Schroeder and the Play for Jake Foundation:
Please take the time to protect your child by registering for a FREE heart screen. The upcoming Play for Jake heart screens are March 26 and 27 (LaPorte High School students March 26; Boston and Kesling Middle School students March 27). This screen will take only minutes out of your child’s school day. No one has to take off work or miss school for this most important screen.
Registration is required. To register, visit http://www.yh4l.org/register/ or obtain a registration form
Jake West
from your child’s school office. The test consists of a three-minute ECG (electrocardiogram) and may include a screening ECHO (echocardiogram). An electrocardiogram (also known as EKG or ECG) is a non-invasive test that measures the electrical activity of the heart and can detect certain heart abnormalities leading to sudden cardiac death. An echocardiogram is a non-invasive test that uses sound waves to create a moving picture of the heart that can detect heart abnormalities. Cardiologists will be on site to interpret the testing. The results from the screening will be sent to parents via an email notification 3 to 4 weeks after the screening. All results are confidential and communicated through a secure system.
Jake West, a LaPorte High School student and football/lacrosse player, died suddenly of a previously undetected heart condition on Sept. 25, 2013.
His mom, Julie: “Something to think about, and honestly, I wouldn’t have thought about this prior to Sept. 25, 2013: Even if your child was screened before, please register them for this free heart screen. Dr. Joseph Marek is the founder and medical director of the Young Hearts for Life (YH4L) Cardiac Screening Program. He is internationally known and has read over 110,000 heart screens and knows what to look for. YH4L is a group of passionate and caring individuals who feel strongly that all children need to be screened. Also, it is recommended that heart screens should be repeated every 2 years. Heart Disease is our #1 killer in the United States and we need to be proactive and protect our children. I wish I knew about undetected heart conditions and I wish Jake would have had this opportunity. When we hear about young adults dying in their sleep or collapsing when they seem to be perfectly healthy, it is most likely because of an undetected heart condition. Please share this information with everyone. There should not be one student who does not get screened. It’s free and I know sometimes we are afraid of the unknown, but if we catch it early we then are capable of protecting our children by getting the medical attention needed. I would give anything to have had this opportunity for my children.
“Before we lost Jake, there was no history of heart disease in our family. So now we know and our future generations can be proactive and have the power of knowledge to protect their families. I don’t want you to ever feel this pain or regret not getting your child screened. Please take a few minutes and register your child for this quick, painless and free screen. It will be the best decision you will make. I wish I could be registering today.”
The free screenings are available thanks to sponsors The Play for Jake Foundation, Kiwanis Club of LaPorte, and Alcoa.
For more information on the Play for Jake Foundation, visit www.playforjake.org.