Morris Hospital Rhythm of Our Youth Cardiac Screening Set for Reed-Custer
and Gardner-South Wilmington High Schools

March 13, 2026, MORRIS, IL – Morris Hospital is bringing its Rhythm of Our Youth cardiac screening to students at Reed-Custer H.S. on March 25 and Gardner-South Wilmington H.S. on April 8. The purpose of the screening is to identify high school students who have an undiagnosed cardiac abnormality that could result in sudden cardiac death.

Parents must complete an electronic consent form prior to the screening day in order for their student to participate. The form can be found at morrishospital.org/rooy.

On the screening day, a team of specially trained volunteers from Morris Hospital will be on site at the school to perform electrocardiogram (ECG) screenings free of charge to students who have received parental permission to participate. An electrocardiogram is a non-invasive, painless test that measures the electrical activity of the heart and detects certain heart abnormalities that can lead to sudden cardiac death.

Screenings are typically held during PE class or study hall, depending on student schedules. The test takes about three minutes to complete.

Based on results of the screenings, about 3 percent of students are referred to their physician for additional follow-up. Typically, less than 1 percent are found to have a medical problem that requires cardiac intervention. Results are sent home to the student’s parents and are not shared with the school.

Morris Hospital launched Rhythm of Our Youth in 2016 as a result of funding provided by generous donors to the Morris Hospital Foundation. Since then, over 12,000 area high school students have been screened through the program.

Parents with students attending Reed-Custer or Gardner-South Wilmington high schools are encouraged to go to morrishospital.org/rooy to fill out a consent form.

Sudden cardiac death claims more than 2,000 lives of children and adolescents in the United States each year. Most victims of sudden cardiac death have had underlying heart conditions that could have been detected through a simple ECG.