Living for Zachary in the News again!

Anytime that Living for Zachary is in the news, we like to share. We are thankful for such a supportive community who will assist us in getting the awareness for Sudden Cardiac Arrest out!
Below is the spot that Karen Schrah was on in August of 2014:


Dallas News | myFOXdfw.com

With high school football practice two-a-days starting soon, teens are at risk for heat stroke and other heart-related issues, but there’s currently a low-cost way that teens can find out if their hearts could be in danger.

Most kids never have their hearts checked because it's not required by middle and high school athletic departments.

In April 2009, 16-year-old Plano East offensive lineman Zachary Schrah collapsed during football practice and later died due to a heart condition that caused sudden cardiac arrest.

No required annual physical showed the condition.

“He played sports since he was a young child,” said his mom, Karen. “I never had any idea.”

A non-profit group, the Living for Zachary Foundation, was later founded in Zachary’s honor to help raise awareness of sudden cardiac arrest in youth.

Karen says that in the past five years, the Living for Zachary Foundation has funded 3,000 screenings for students between the ages of 12 and 22, a few of which have become heart patients.

“Once we find a problem, we make recommendations for lifestyle changes, and often that involves athletic activity,” said Dr. David Rawitscher, a cardiologist at Baylor Heart Hospital Plano. “And it's hard to tell a student, 'I'm sorry, you can't play competitive basketball,’ ‘I'm sorry, you can't play competitive football.'”

A 15-minute, non-invasive heart screening normally costs several hundred dollars.

But a partnership between Living for Zachary, Frontera Strategies and Walgreens has made the test free at two Collin County locations for any person between 12 and 22, regardless of whether or not he or she is an athlete.

“This test could've saved my son's life,” said Karen.

There will be other slots available after that for $55.

Baylor Plano, Denton and McKinney offer the test for $100.

Posted: Aug 04, 2014 9:06 PM CST Updated: Aug 04, 2014 9:35 PM CST

By: Calvert Collins

 

Get Ready for October!

Sudden Cardiac Awareness is Living for Zachary's main objective. We encourage and support Heart Screening and AED use.

Living for Zachary is a non-profit organization [(501 (c) (3) 80-0410066] with a mission dedicated to saving young lives from sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). The organization was founded in honor of Zachary Schrah, who was only 16 years old when he collapsed during a high school football practice in Plano on April 2, 2009. After Zachary’s death, the Living for Zachary Organization was established to raise SCA awareness of undiagnosed heart issues in teens. 

Congress declared October "National Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Month." Four years and many useless deaths later many still do not understand that SCA is different from a Heart Attack and affects more than 1,000 people every single day. 1 in 10 SCA victims survive.

In October we will be sponsoring our annual HeartBeats Run.  Go to www.Living4Zachary.org and take a look at all the wonderful events to be held throughout the day. Sign up and be a part of the Living for Zachary HeartBeats Run!

CPR - A Texas High School Graduation Requirement

This is music to Living for Zachary's ears! Now - CPR is a required course of knowledge for all high school graduates.  This means that we are another step closer in bringing Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness to all and everyone will be able to pitch in and do their part.

There is a CPR Training Kit that is easy to use and is designed for the schools. This kit contains everything that a trainer would need to train 10 plus children. This CPR training kit can be moved from one location such as the gym to another such as a cafeteria. Texas is No Doubt creating the next generation of lifesavers.

The HB 897 ensures that every single young adult graduating high school will now be equipped with the knowledge of saving a life. In June 2013 Texas Governor Rick Perry signed this into law and therefore making it possible for every single graduate to be able to save a life and make a difference. 

Is your state participating in this High School CPR Training? There is a map outlining which states are now requiring CPR for High School graduates and which states are still in the works.  (right)

Heart Disease at 38 Years Old

Less than two years ago, at age 38, Josh Miller suddenly found himself within hours of catastrophic heart failure.

Suffering from chest pain, the Gunter husband and father drove himself to the nearest emergency room. Doctors found that he had four arteries that were 90 percent blocked. Physicians at that facility did a stent procedure, but Josh needed triple bypass surgery.
Miller’s wife, Lauren, wanted to be sure he would get the care he needed, so she hopped online and began researching local hospital quality. That led them to make a key move in the midst of their life-threatening health crisis. Lauren Miller had her husband transferred to The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano, a facility jointly owned with physicians, for his surgery.

Josh Miller is living proof that they made the right call in fall 2012. To Lauren Miller, their experience is a lesson to others in similar situations.

“Go online, know your situation … and what you need,” she said. “Look at the hospital ratings and then figure out whatever you have to do to get them to the best of the best.”
Further affirmation of their choice came recently from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), which awarded The Heart Hospital three star ratings for the third time as a top performer in key cardiac surgery services based on patient outcomes.

Following his surgery, Miller improved his diet and exercised regularly. He lost more than 60 pounds.
“I’m here today because of the outstanding care I received at The Heart Hospital,” he said.

 

Scott Goldstein
August 7, 2014
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