Davis Joint Unified School District designated first Heart Safe School District in California

Project ADAM Sacramento has designated Davis Joint Unified School District as a Heart Safe School District. It is the first school district in the state to earn this title.

Project ADAM helps prepare schools for a cardiac emergency through emergency response plans, staff CPR and automatic external defibrillator (AED) training, and sudden cardiac arrest awareness education. The Sacramento affiliate is based at UC Davis Children’s Hospital.

“The district’s school nurses established, and have now achieved, the goal of 100% Heart Safe Schools by the end of the 22-23 school year,” said Amy Stacy, district school nurse, who noted that each school site already had working AEDs in place. “I have watched staff transform during the Project ADAM training drills to be confident about their ability to recognize and respond to a cardiac emergency.”

All 17 Davis schools, including elementary, junior high and high school locations, have developed written medical emergency response plans, customized to each school site, and conducted medical emergency response drills. Nurses completed hands-only CPR training with staff at each school.

“Health and safety are a priority to our Associate Superintendent of Student Services Laura Juanitas and the entire district,” Stacy said. “She has ensured that nurses have the tools and support necessary to implement AED programs in every school and now, furthering that mission, the Heart Safe School designations.”

Project ADAM coordinator Rebecca McCormac said that the district nurses and school staff were enthusiastic, eager to learn and motivated to make the schools safer for the community they serve.

“This team is prepared to save lives. It is truly an accomplishment to have a Heart Safe district and it has been a joy to work with the Davis schools,” McCormac said. 

ABOUT PROJECT ADAM SACRAMENTO

Project ADAM is a national, non-profit organization committed to saving lives through advocacy, education, preparedness and collaboration to prevent sudden cardiac death. Our Project ADAM Sacramento team focuses on prevention training and education for local schools and the community, helping them become Heart Safe Schools and supporting their efforts to be equipped and trained to respond to a sudden cardiac arrest. It is based at UC Davis Children’s Hospital. For more information, visit http://children.ucdavis.edu/projectadam

ABOUT DJUSD

The Davis Joint Unified School District provides innovative educational programs to approximately 8,400 students at 17 school sites. In partnership with parents, DJUSD helps students develop the abilities and values needed to reach their full potential. Each year, an average of 750 students graduate from District high schools. With approximately 1,000 employees, including 460 teachers, DJUSD contributes significant economic value to the community. For more information, go to https://www.djusd.net or facebook.com/DavisJointUnifiedSchoolDistrict.