Lincoln, NE – Lincoln Children’s Museum in collaboration with Children’s Hospital & Medical Center, announced Wednesday, March 22 that it has received a Heart Safe designation through Project ADAM, a program that ensures schools and organizations have automated defibrillator (AED) equipment, response training and advanced emergency preparedness procedures in the event of a Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) on campus. Children’s Project ADAM program partners with schools and organizations statewide to encourage preparedness for an emergency situation and save lives.
Director of Operations and Engagement at the Lincoln Children’s Museum, Mandy Haase-Thomas, is glad to have had this opportunity: “I am thrilled that our organization has taken additional steps to become a heart-safe site, and it is a testament to our commitment to creating a safe and healthy environment for our guests. This achievement is a result of the hard work and dedication of our team, and I hope we can lead by example in promoting heart health awareness and preparedness for those that serve the youth population.”
Project ADAM (Automated Defibrillators in Adam’s Memory) was named for Adam Lemel, a 17-year-old Wisconsin teenager who suffered a fatal sudden cardiac arrest in 1999 while playing basketball at school. Access to an AED and immediate care could have saved Adam’s life. 
Project ADAM’s Heart Safe School program ensures schools and organizations have well-maintained AEDs available, CPR- and AED-trained staff and a practiced emergency plan to respond to a collapse, giving students, staff, and community visitors the best possible chance to survive an unexpected cardiac event. Lincoln Children’s Museum staff understand the importance and used this opportunity to educate staff to be prepared and offer assistance if a situation would arise.
Children’s, the region’s only hospital dedicated exclusively to serving children and teens, was designated a Project ADAM affiliate hospital in 2022 and plans to welcome more than a dozen schools and organizations with Heart Safe designations in 2023. Matt Sorensen, M.D., an electrophysiologist and member of Children’s Cardiac Care team, serves as the local medical director for Project ADAM. The initiative marks a strategic investment to align Children’s cardiac experts as an important resource for community schools and is a collaboration between Children’s Criss Heart Center and Community Health & Advocacy teams.
“Project ADAM is a nationwide, collaborative effort to improve the safety of our schools and community and help them achieve preparedness for an unexpected cardiac event, and we are proud to serve as an affiliate hospital of this exceptional program,” Dr. Sorensen said. “Becoming Heart Safe reflects an exemplary commitment to the health and safety of people of all ages across our communities. Each school and organization is key to these efforts, and we look forward to seeing the continued growth of the Heart Safe program and Project ADAM’s reach across the state and region.”
According to the American Heart Association, more than 350,000 out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrests occur in the United States each year, and approximately 10 percent survive.
Since 1999, more than 4,000 schools across the country have achieved a Heart Safe designation.
Learn more about Children’s Project ADAM program at ChildrensOmaha.org/ProjectADAM and the national Project ADAM program at ProjectADAM.com.
About Lincoln Children’s Museum
The Lincoln Children’s Museum invites children to create, discover, and learn through the power of play. The museum’s hands-on exhibits, day and summer camps, and learning programs provide countless opportunities for children to gain knowledge in arts, sciences, and humanities. Every visit, membership, donation, or in-museum purchase helps to support their mission. To learn more, visit www.lincolnchildrensmuseum.org.
About Children’s Hospital & Medical Center
Children’s Hospital & Medical Center is the only full-service, pediatric health care center in Nebraska, providing expertise in more than 50 pediatric specialty services to children across a five-state region and beyond. Children’s is home to Nebraska’s only Level IV regional Newborn Intensive Care Unit and the state’s only Level II Pediatric Trauma Center. Children’s is recognized as a 2022-23 Best Children’s Hospital by U.S. News & World Report in Pulmonology & Lung Surgery and Urology. Visit us online at ChildrensOmaha.org.
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